The Rise of Hell
by Wacko12
Summary: The final battle nears and Fairy Tail faces their greatest foe ever. But with their Fire Dragon Slayer gone and the enemy having a secret weapon, can our heroes stand against the Demons of Hell? Or will all fall into darkness? Based off of Natsu is End Theory! NaLu and other pairings. Fairy Tail is not mine but the OC are! Rated T may shift to M for violence. Read and review!
1. March of Hell

**Okay so this is too support the new Natsu is E.N.D theory! It won't effect my other stories of Fairy Tail so don't fret! Just a heads up Natsu disappears after the battle of the dragons so isn't present during the Sun Village Arc. Furthermore there will be more demons added. Finally I might be moving a little bit slower since I'm preparing for college in the Fall but I will try and do what I can. Anyway without further ado let's begin!**

Types of Speech:

"Normal Talking"

'_Thoughts'_

"YELLING"

**(Somewhere in Fiore)**

High above in the sky, far from the eyes of humans, animals and any other creatures, was a giant piece of earth in the shape of a cube, floating aimlessly in the sky. At the top part of the cube, which looked like a barren wasteland, was a giant and slightly ruined castle. It had three separate sections, one on top of the other with the first two squarer in shape while the third and top one along with the turrets and roof are more curved. Surrounding it and protruding from the ground are number of spines with spikes on them. All in all it had a very demonic appearance and it was well suited since it served as the home and headquarters of Tartarus, one of the three major Dark Guilds and a third of the Balam Alliance.

Currently there was a lot of commotion going on within the castle as various sections were covered in ice, with people trapped inside them too. Voices could be heard as more people, all of them wearing matching attires, were running about. All of them were heavily armed. "What's going on?" A commanding yet calm female voice shouted to some of the soldiers.

"Rosa-sama! Silver-sama has gone mad! He's freezing everything in his path and appears to be trying to make an escape!" A soldier replied to the woman.

Said woman had a voluptuous body, including pure white skin, large breast, perfectly shaped thighs and hourglass figure. She had long purple hair that went down to the center of her back completely revealing her face with bangs on the sides on the side of her face. Sticking out of her hair were ears that had pointed tips and each one had two earrings in them. She had pink eyes and slit pupils similar to that of a cat. Her outfit consisted of a black dress with long sleeves that fell down just below her knees with a high thigh slit on the left and a golden chain belt wrapped loosely around the waist of the dress. The dress only covered the upper parts of her arms and the underside of her breast, leaving the top and shoulders exposed. Under her dress she wore long blue leggings and black shoes. Just beneath her left knee was a violet variation of her guild's symbol.

The woman made a "tch" noise at the news before looking at the soldier. "Tell the others not to engage Silver. They would be no matched against his magic. I will go and deal with him." Rosa said before turning towards another soldier. "Can we pinpoint Silver's current location?" She asked.

Before the soldier could reply the sound of a twisted laughter rang through the halls. Coming out of the shadows was another unusual person. This person was male by the looks of it and had a short and round yellow body with purple markings. He wore armor that covered his shoulders and arms plus a helmet that covered the top part of his head only as well as his sole eye. He also had no ears either but instead three holes on the sides of his head in their place. Around his neck was a necklace as well as other various paintings while black stripes were around his arms and legs. To top it all off he had a cane in his right hand, most likely using it to balance himself. The cane had a round top with the guild symbol painted on it. "Gehehe, I'm afraid that won't be possible Rosa-sama. Silver-sama has already left the castle and teleported down towards the surface. Though he might be off from his selected trajectory due to a brief scuffle he had with Abaddon-sama." The round person exclaimed, never losing his gleeful smile.

"It would've been a lot better if I had stopped him altogether, Franmalth." A third voice said that caused Rosa and Franmalth, along with the Tartarus soldiers swiftly turning towards the source. Another person, a male again, moved towards them. He was a tall man with a lean muscular build. His skin was a dark orange with red swirl markings covering his entire body. His hair was short, spiky and grey while sticking out from his forehead was a small pair of light yellow horns. He also had a short grey beard too. His eyes were a dark red that seemed to glow fiercely. He wore dark grey armor that consisted of a chest plate and greaves, with golden gauntlets. Strapped to his shoulder pads was a dark red cloak that went down to his ankles. Underneath his armor he wore a short sleeve black shirt, and white trousers. On his feet were black sandals that revealed only his toes. The last bit was that on his chest plate and greaves were a yellow version of his Guild's symbol, while a black variant were on his gauntlets.

"My apologies Abaddon-sama." Franmalth said politely, showing a great level of respect for the newcomer.

Abaddon paid him little attention as he kept talking. "Silver's actions are due to learning that our Master's has returned. He most likely fled knowing that he couldn't take on all of the Demon Lords before reaching the Master." Abaddon explained.

"So he has gone to gain allies then? Gehehehe" Franmalth summarized. "But who would be foolish enough to challenge us anyway?" He asked rhetorically.

"Abaddon-sama, should we dispatch forces to hunt Silver and eliminate him? His magic is a serious threat to the Master." Rosa asked the leader of Tartarus's elites.

"No" Abaddon said plainly, showing his fangs. This caused Rosa and Franmalth to look at him in surprise. Turning towards the soldiers gathered Abaddon said, "Go and remove the ice and recover the wounded. Also have sentry position over the Cube in case of attacks. And keep an eye out for Silver and inform me once you found him." The soldiers nodded before heading off. Abaddon then turned towards his fellow Demon Lords. "We've been give orders by the Master to await further instructions. Or are you challenging his orders Rosa?" Abaddon said.

Rosa looked like she wanted to argue but knew that it would be pointless to speak against the word of the Master, not that she ever would. Letting out a sigh she said, "Very well then I shall not act." She replied with a bow before walking off, leaving the two males to themselves.

Elsewhere in a different section of a castle, two people could be seen in what appeared to be a throne room, with torches ignited with blue flames that illuminated the room. Banners hung from the ceiling with robust color and yellow trims on the side and the guild's symbol printed in large black ink. At the far end of this intimidating room was a throne. The throne was dark red in design with armrests that had demon faces at the front and black cushions on the seat and backrest. It stood on top of a small podium that had a black rug going down from it towards the large door entrance on the other end.

One of the two people was standing before the other. This person was a young man and appeared to be human were it not for the demonic gleam in his eyes. He had long shaggy dark colored hair, with the bangs reaching his nose and some strands covering the sides of his face all the way below his shoulders. On the back he had his hair form into a big ponytail. The attire he wore consisted of a long black jacket trimmed with a light-colored flame pattern with the lapels being a matching color too and tattered at the bottom of the jacket. Under that was a black frilly V-neck shirt, closing down the middle with a belt at the clavicle. The ending was a pair of light-colored pants that laid over a pair of with a seam down the middle a a pair of black buckles, two on each calf crossing over one another as an X. This man was Mard Geer, also known as the Underworld King and second-in-command of the Dark Guild Tartarus.

The second person was sitting on the throne that Mard Geer was facing. This one also looked like a young man, but his clothing and the darkness hid most of his form. From what could be seen was that he had tan skin, and lean muscles too. He wore an open-collared, long-sleeve red coat with golden trims with a matching cloth held by a brown belt with an oval golden buckle. Underneath the coat was a short sleeve black muscle shirt. For the lower part he wore black trousers also held by the belt with matching black trench boots covering his feet and nearly reached his knees. The boots were held by three grey bands each and had yellow lines at the bottom of the boots. And finally, the man wore a tattered, black, ankle-length, hooded cloak, with said hood over his head and covering his face. The man seemed to be calm judging by his posture, which was his right elbow resting on the armchair while he rested his chin on his right fist.

"So Silver fled." The hooded man said, not asked.

"Yes, it appears that he realized that his chances of reaching you without fighting the Hell Gates currently here would be pointless and decided to retreat." Mard said with a calm expression on his face. "What are your orders regarding this Master?" The man asked.

The hooded man smirked, fangs glinting in the dark. "Why would you ask a question that you already know the answer too Mard?" The man asked jokingly.

Mard merely smirked in response before bowing his head respectfully to the Guild Master. "We'll proceed as usual and when the time comes we'll deal with that remnant of a human. But in the meanwhile summon the Demon Lords that are not on an assignment. That excludes Jackal, Broma, and Tempesta." The man said.

"And what of Kyouka?" Mard asked.

"She has gone off to find suitable recruits correct?" The man asked, receiving a nod from the Underworld King. "Then leave her be. She will be finished soon."

Mard Geer bowed. "As you wish Master E.N.D" The Underworld King before walking out the room, leaving E.N.D, the Black Mage Zeref's most vile creation, alone to his musings. Within the dark chamber, with only blue flames as a source of light, the hooded man said to himself. "Now then will the darkness of hell consume the world in one fell swoop? Or will the light put up a fight before overrun by despair?"

**(Era, Magic Council)**

Outside the building that housed the Magic Council, several guards patrolling the outer walls were talking amongst themselves.

"Hey did you see how Fairy Tail did during the Grand Magic Games?" One of the guards asked two others while the fourth was several feet away.

"Yeah, turns out their core members returned after seven years of being missing. It was because of them that they got back to the top." A second guard added.

"And did you see how sexy their women were during that match against Mirajane and Jenny?" A third guard said with a faint blush on his face.

"Hell yeah those Fairy chicks look like they haven't aged a day!" The first guard replied with a laugh.

"Hey George why don't you join us?" The second guard shouted towards the fourth guard. But all he got was silence. "George…?"

When there was no response the second time all three guards turned to see that their fourth companion was missing, completely vanish. "H-hey where did George go?" The third guard asked nervously, raising his spear.

"I, I don't know. He was here a moment ago." The first guard said.

A brief changing in the wind caught their attention and as they turned towards the second guard they saw, much to their horror that he too had vanished without a trace.

"What the hell!?" The first guard exclaimed only to be greeted with silence for the third guard had also disappeared, leaving the man all by himself. The man didn't even have a moment to yell out before darkness consumed his vision.

Meanwhile inside, things were progressing normally as ever. Today the council was in session with a very important topic at hand. Though somewhere along the line it shifted towards the thoughts of a certain magic guild. "Fairy Tail won the Grand Magic Games, eh." One of council members commented.

"Oh boy" One near him said. Outside the room were Lahar and Doranbolt who couldn't help but listen in. Doranbolt resisted the urge to snort and merely rolled his eyes while Lahar smirked at his colleague.

"The moment that the Tenrou Group came back, this is what they give us. Seems like that guild enjoys stand out." Another member said.

"Yes however have you heard that one of their dragon slayers, the one called Salamander, disappeared after the games?" The first member said.

Doranbolt winced when he heard that comment. During the final stages of the battle with the seven dragons and future Rogue, it was Natsu Dragneel, Fire Dragon Slayer of Fairy Tail whom had save the day and in result the entire country. He had managed to send himself, future Rogue and two dragons, one of them that had joined Natsu's side, smashing right into the Eclipse Gate, the source of where Future Rogue and the dragons came from. However he had disappeared after the result of the explosion, nothing but his scarf could be found amongst the ruins. It had been a wound that Doranbolt knew that Fairy Tail would not recover from so easily.

"I'm still more focus on if we should even still keep hosting the Grand Magic Games or not." A fourth council member said.

"Well if an entire kingdom supports it then there is little we can do to stop it. Just trying to step in and dictate such matters is hard enough." A fifth council member replied.

"Silence everyone!" Chairman Gran Doma said to the council staff banging down onto the ground. Once eyes were on him did he continue to speak, "We did not come here to discuss about such things, today's topic is Tartarus. At first they had barely done anything to acquire our attention but until seven years ago they had slowly become more active. And since seven days ago dark guilds affiliated with them have been wiped out. As we haven't been able to identify those responsible, this is both a thankful and trouble situation."

"If it's the work of an official guild, there is worry about a possible retaliation." A counselor commented.

"What about that independent guild?" Another asked.

"Crime Sorciere!? Hm, that is a definite possibility." Another one said.

"This reeks of Fairy Tail if you ask me." A female counselor said.

"Perhaps with great power, comes a desire to show it off." A counselor added.

"I think it's a bit unfair to judge Fairy Tail so quickly." Org said after hearing these comments.

"Org-roshi always tends to take Fairy Tail's side in such matters." A counselor chuckled.

Ignoring the comment Org continued. "This is just a hypothesis, but what if the perpetrators were Tartarus themselves?" Org wondered out loud.

This seemed to attract the council's attention, with some looking a bit skeptical. "Why would they do such a thing?" A counselor asked.

"Who knows" Org replied "However, there are grounds to believe it could be to strengthen their forces while simultaneously cutting off superfluous weeds." Org explained.

There was a moment of silence as the council members looked at one another. Before long they all burst out laughing, saved Doma and Org, the latter shocked by the laughter.

"Dark guilds taking each other out!?"

"That's impossible"

"Tartarus already has all the forces they need."

"Org-roshi, maybe you're getting senile in your old age?"

"Well, Org-roshi's theory is a plausible one." Gran Doma muttered cutting off all other voices.

"Chairman!"

"Now is the time for us to deal with Tartarus after turning a blind eye on them for so long." Doma's face took on a serious expression as he spoke. "The true form and might of our enemy remains unknown. But if they were to fall apart here, the Balam Alliance would surely follow. Now is the time in which, we as the council must take up our strongest arms and make our stand."

Suddenly the council doors burst open, with a terrified guard coming in. "I-it's terrible!" The guard shouted in hysteria.

"What!? Fool! We're in the middle of a meeting here!" A counselor shouted.

"N-Now's not the time for that! Intruders have-" The guard was cut off when explosions went off everywhere in the building. Walls fell down, flames seared through, ripping through pillars and tearing through the guards and other occupants. By the time the explosions died down the once grand building was nothing more then a pile of rubble with smoke rising into the sky.

Amongst the rubble in the destroyed council room, Doranbolt pushed himself up. Coughing and clutching his head the man looked around in horror at the destruction. "W-what happened?" He murmured before his eyes widened as he saw Lahar lying on the ground motionless. Rushing over Doranbolt picked up his friend. "Lahar! Hang in there! Answer me!" Doranbolt said. He gritted his teeth when he felt no pulse from Lahar. "This can't be…" He said as he looked around and saw all of the counselors dead, even the chairman. "No way! Is anyone still alive!?" Doranbolt pleaded.

"D-Doranbolt…" A weak voice said.

"Org-roshi!" Doranbolt exclaimed, as he was about to run towards the injured counselor. But before he could move a hand suddenly appeared and slammed on top of Org's head. On top of the counselor was a young muscular man with multiple animal features. His light hair reached down to his shoulders while covering the left side of his face, also jut upwards on top of his head in a pair of prominent protrusions shaped like ears (though they did look actually ears however), his nose was small and dark like a canine's; he had a furry tail protruding from his lower back and pointed teeth. His eyes had dark slit pupils and bear a thick dark outline and dark spots were presented around them. His forearms and hands were almost completely covered by a larger variety of similar covered shapes, which in correspondence to his wrists fuse together to leave his hands completely dark. His attire was a light, striped tank top on his torso, pair with a dark bandana that adorned by light spots circling his neck, which was arranged to form three ends pointing downwards as well as some sort of collar. A light garb was around his waist and held closed by a button on the front of its belt-like part and split in two tails on the back, each adorned by a series of dark rectangles near their lower edges. Finally his pants were very loose and baggy and while mainly light in color, they also had dark sections on the thighs' front and on the calves' back with a clasp-like ornament located some inches below each knee.

The man snickered as he held Org's head. "No, no, letting you live is not an option. Assassinating all the council members is our objective after all. Explode." The man said.

"O-Org-roshi!" Doranbolt cried as he tried to help the counselor. However he wouldn't be able to reach him in time. "Stop!"

"Doranbolt run…" Org ordered.

"I-I cannot!" Doranbolt shouted.

"Think of what would happen if we lose you?" Org said seriously.

"Running is not an option. Not from my explosions anyway." The assailant commented.

"Go Doranbolt!" Org ordered again as Jackal's hand began to glow energy.

"The name is Wild Dog Jackal, one of the Demon Lords of Tartarus. Remember that in hell, as the name of the man that massacred the entire Council!" Jackal declared.

"Live! Live to carry out your own sense of justice…Doranbolt!" Org cried out.

"Org-roshi!" Doranbolt shouted as the entire area was engulf in flames.

Several seconds later, Jackal could be seen standing at the edge of a cliff overlooking the ruins of the Magical Council. He appeared to be taken in the sight when a voice suddenly spoke from behind. "As ever Jackal you do things so flashy like." The voice said.

Jackal turned around to see a person appearing out of thin air. The person was standing oddly, his knees bent as he walked towards Jackal, his back hunched. He had pale white skin and long wild green hair that went down past his shoulders. He had dark green eyes with the sclera being black. A dark purple cloth covered the lower portion of his face, completely obscuring his mouth. His arms and legs were lean and muscular and his nails were colored red. The person wore a long-sleeve purple poncho, with the sleeves going past his hands. The sleeves had purple and yellow stripes. A golden necklace was hanging around his neck with a straw raincoat protruding from the back of it. He also wore black trench pants that reach his knees and no footwear, however, and he was completely barefoot. On his right calf was the Tartarus guild symbol, with another one on the mouth cloth.

"Heh I was just getting the message across Broma." Jackal retorted.

Broma chuckled through the cloth. "Heh, heh, that and subtle was never your forte, Jackal. Remember if I hadn't gotten rid of the guards outside, you'd never would've gotten in." Broma commented.

"Tch" Was all Jackal said before he began walking off. "Oh by the way." Broma said as Jackal walked past him. "We've been given new orders. You're to head towards the next target and I'm to return back to base. And it seems as if Silver has betrayed us." Broma reported.

"Did he now? That probably didn't go so well." Jackal commented. "So what did the Master say to that?"

"For now we leave Silver be until he's next spotted." Broma reported before he began shimmering. "For now our orders are simple…raise hell." And with that Broma vanished into thin air.

Jackal stood there for a few seconds in silence before cackling gleefully. "Ah it's good to have the Master back!" He said before heading off.

**(Magnolia, Fairy Tail)**

Meanwhile things at Fairy Tail were going along their normal pace, people laughing, drinking and the occasional fighting. However right now Erza, also known as Titania and an S-class mage of Fairy Tail, was conversing with Guild Master Makarov about recent events at the Sun Village.

"So that Minerva joined a Dark Guild?" Makarov asked.

"Yes and it seemed as if though she knew or had information about who was responsible for turning the giant's village into ice." Erza replied as she recalled the spirit of the flame dragon, Atlas Flame, saying it was the work of an Ice Devil Slayer.

"And what of her father? The former Guild Master of Sabertooth?" Makarov asked.

"His whereabouts are still unknown." Erza said.

"Hey speaking of Sabertooth, I heard that Sting is the new Guild Master!" Laki commented to the side.

"Wow, a young and good looking guild master?" Kinana wondered, unknowingly causing a twitch from Makarov who overhead them.

"Either way we should report this to the council. Minerva was a powerful mage and her being part of a Dark Guild might cause problems." Makarov concluded.

"I was also thinking of contacting Sting as well." Erza replied.

Elsewhere not to far form where Juvia was trying to get Gray to eat what she called 'Juvia-bread' Lucy, Wendy, Gajeel, Happy, Carla and Pantherlily were gathered around Levy who had a book in her hand. They were researching a demon named E.N.D, one whom Atlas Flame had mentioned as the vilest of Zeref's demons and that Igneel couldn't kill it. A thing to notice was that wrapped around Lucy's neck was Natsu's signature scarf, wearing it as a memento of the deceased Dragon Slayer. The Celestial Mage had taken to wearing it after finding it amongst the remains of the Eclipse Gate that Natsu gave his life to destroy by sending Future Rogue and a dragon crashing on top of it. The scarf had been the only thing of the Fire Dragon Slayer's person that could be found since they couldn't even find Natsu's body.

"Here it is." Levy said. "E.N.D, it doesn't go into much detail about it. But it seems that it's on a completely different level as Deliora and Lullaby combine." The Script Mage said.

"Does that mean its Zeref's most strongest demon?" Lucy wondered.

"That would be really scary." Wendy muttered.

"What are these demons of Zeref's books anyway?" Pantherlily asked.

"The hell I'd know." Gajeel commented.

"There demons created by the Black Mage Zeref. All the magic needed to summon them is imbued into books he made." Carla answered.

"So if we had one of those books we could summon a demon?" Happy asked.

"I guess, though it's most likely one demon per book." Carla replied.

"And the one that has E.N.D. could possible in the possession of Tartarus." Lucy commented. "And according to Atlas Flame's spirit Natsu's dragon, Igneel, couldn't defeat it."

"Didn't you say that you saw Zeref on Tenrou Island?" Levy asked Happy.

"Aye, Natsu, Evergreen, Elfman and I ran into him during the S-Class Exams." Happy replied with a shiver, recalling the intense moment at that time. "And it looked like Zeref knew Natsu somehow"

Before anyone could think about that the guild's door bust open, revealing a frantic Droy and Jet, the former crashing onto the floor while the latter was shouting with a newspaper in his hand. "This is bad! Big news just came in!"

**(Magic Council Prison)**

"I thought it was about time you showed up." Cobra said as he stared up at a grim looking Doranbolt from his cell. Said man's clothes were tattered, especially the cape, and he had bruises and cut all over his body.

Doranbolt glared down at him. "I presume that you 'heard' everything that happened up there." He said.

"Don't be stupid, this cell seals my magic. I just heard the explosions." Cobra responded.

Getting straight to the point Doranbolt said next, "Spit out what you know about Tartarus."

Cobra smirked, "I an't squealing for free you know. I demand the release for all six of us in exchange."

"I don't have the authority to do that." Doranbolt replied in a monotone voice.

"Then speak about it to the higher ups." Cobra said with an indifferent shrug.

Doranbolt was quiet for a moment before replying. "The higher ups…are all dead."

Cobra's lone eye widened before he smiled. "Guess they really went all out there." He said.

That seemed to have set something off inside Doranbolt. Because for one moment he was facing in front of Cobra and the next he teleported right behind the dark mage, a dagger touching Cobra's neck. "My friends are dead, and my patience is wearing quickly. Speak now or you breathe your last breath." Doranbolt said in a calm but threatening tone.

Cobra seemed stunned for a brief moment but quickly recomposed himself and smiled. "I an't budging on that condition of mine. Those are my allies, regardless of circumstances. But, I will tell you one thing."

**(Tartarus HQ)**

Broma was standing on top of a ruined pillar knees crouched, outside the meeting room. He was minding his own business when a feminine voice spoke, "You seem to be in a good mood Broma." The voice said as a woman approached the man with several soldiers behind her. Said woman had unique appearance, mainly being her half-human half-aviary appearance. She also has a large chest and a curvaceous hourglass figure, both of which were emphasizes by her revealing attire along with a helmet that covered her entire face minus her eyes, mouth and two long wing like pieces of hair protrude from the side. She also had sharp and scaly talons hidden by long sleeves while having bird like feet.

"Well if it an't Kyouka-san. I see that sexy body of yours hasn't change at all." Broma said with a large grin. "Did ya hear the news?"

"Of Silver's betrayal?" Kyouka asked. "Yes I expected such a thing but it seems that a replacement has already been brought in."

"The Master is quick isn't he?" Broma asked. "I hear the new guy's a tough one."

Kyouka nodded absentmindedly. "By the way where are Tempesta and Jackal?" She asked.

"They're still on missions." Franmalth said as he approached the two. "Broma-san was recalled back in order to receive new assignment, as were the rest of us."

"That means that the operation has begun." Kyouka said with a smile as more people plus Abaddon and Rosa joined them. All of them had different appearances but all were menacing.

"Indeed" Abaddon said as he walked at the head of the group, the other's following. "Now is the time, for us to show the humans the power of the Underworld. The hell brought forth by the Demon Lords of Tartarus."

"None of them are human." Cobra said with a wide grin. "They're all demons from Zeref's books."

Doranbolt's eyes widened in horror and shock at the revelation. Cobra kept speaking however. "Their Master's name is E.N.D. The strongest demon out of Zeref's library of works."

**So there you go! Just to let you know thirteen new demons have been added to Tartarus, hence why it was changed from Nine Demon Gates to Demon Lords. Also Silver's earlier defection I made since he wouldn't stay if E.N.D had fully recovered since he wouldn't be able to go against the other demons all at once. So another demon has already taken his position. Plus it adds some more drama too. Review!**


	2. The Demons Descend

**So here's the second chapter of this story! Now you get to learn the rest of the names of my OC demons! And make sure to review! The more reviews I get the more motivated I become to work on future chapters!**

**(Tartarus, Demon Lord's Meeting Chambers)**

The Demon Lords were seating in different forms of chairs to suit their physics, inside a large round room. Along with Jackal and Tempesta's seats, two more were vacant, with one standing slightly higher then others, with the fourth empty seat on the left while Abaddon sat on the right. Behind each chair was a large book with different words on them. Currently the Demon Lords were conversing amongst one another as they waited for their Master.

"Gehehe, that's just liked you Jackal-san, always so flashy with it." Franmalth of the Armored Shell commented. "I wonder how much the lives of the nine council members are worth? Gehehe!" Then he turned towards Broma of the Empty Mist and leaning back in his chair. "And what about you Broma-san? I bet you collected quite a lot during your time there, gehehe."

A wide smile appeared on Broma's face at the comment. "I did indeed though I have to say they were quite fragile as they didn't last so long." He said followed by more laughter from Franmalth.

"Franmalth cease that foul laughter this instant." Torafusa of the Darkness said. "Our dignity will be in questioned."

Torafusa was a muscular demon of great height and resembled a Lizardman, with spiked scales covering parts of his dark pinkish body. On his head he had a dark red plate that covered the entire part of his skull and a horn was protruding from the front part of it. Covering his chin was a long jagged metal plate that looked like a beard. His arms were quite long that they touched the ground and with blades on the side. Torafusa's attire consisted of an opened brown shirt with two bands running across his bare chest. Over that he was wearing an open coat trimmed with light-colored fur along with loose light brown pants that had black stripes at the ankle and brown shoes.

"As if demons have things like dignity or even shit for that matter!" Ezel of the Dojigiri exclaimed loudly. "Let me go next Abaddon-san! Let's hurry up and massacre the humans already!"

Ezel was a demon of imposing height with pale blue skin. He was tall and muscular and possessed the most demonic features out of everyone. Some parts included four arms, spiky shoulders, spikes were coming out of his head and, most noticeable was that he had seven tentacles in the bottom of half of his body, replacing his legs. Ezel had two vertical tattoos running down across his chest and four more tattoos circling his biceps. He also wore a chain across his chest diagonally going up his left shoulder and is linked on both sides by a large dark medallion on his uppermost left abdominal. Finally Ezel has a black piece of clothing that covered some of his bottom half. On his upper right forearm was the guild symbol.

"You need to relax Ezel. Your time has not yet come." Fehler of the Crimson Snow said to the four-armed demon.

Fehler was a thin but muscular dark skin demon with white hair that was tied back into dreadlocks with a small ponytail at the end. His yellow eyes seem to glow in annoyance towards his fellow Demon Lord. Now and then a snake tongue would pop out of his mouth, followed by a hissing sound. He wore a dark red sleeveless shirt that revealed his arms and shoulders. Around his forearms were long, light purple wrist warmers that went up to his elbows. Also he had dark blue pants that had black lines around the knee parts and long grayish-purple boots that went passed his ankles. On the palm of his left hand was his guild symbol.

"Fehler-san is right Ezel-san. All stories have a proper sequence." Clear Moon Sky Sayla added. "This is still the prologue, no, the preface rather."

Said woman had a voluptuous body, including fair skin, large breast, perfectly shaped thighs and hourglass figure. She had long black hair that went down to the center of her back and two large gold-looking horns protruding from the sides of her head and pointing upwards. She also had a white band upon her head that separated her hair, framing her bangs from her hair below the band. Marked upon the center of her forehead is a small circular symbol with a small dot on the inside and surrounded by several dots around the top. Tied around her neck was a small white-colored strap. A very revealing beige-colored leopard-printed kimono, which showed off the top part of her breasts, covered the rest of her body, along with her shoulders and also split down the middle showing more of her cleavage. There were also decorative marks on her shoulders. The kimono was wrapped around her torso with a thick, decorative yellow ribbon that was tied around her back. Finally thigh-high black socks that revealed her heels and toes complimented the outfit.

"Exactly" Slave Star Angel Kyouka said from her seat on Abaddon's right. "Do not be in such a rush, Ezel. You have your assignment given to you by Abaddon-sama."

"My body's throbbing!" Ezel exclaimed angrily. "It's not fair for Jackal and Tempesta to get all the juicy bits!"

"Enough Ezel" Soul of Wrath Abaddon said to the four-armed demon. "You shall follow your orders unless directed so by the Master. Now cease your whining."

Ezel grumbled a bit but did not dare speak out against the leader of the Demon Lords.

"I truly don't care what our assignments are. So long as we get closer to our goal I'm fine." Petram of the Ruination commented.

Petram was a demon of average height, being around the same size of a full-grown human adult. He had pale blue skin and complete black eyes with no pupils. His ears were pointy and stuck out from his short bluish black hair that was slicked back. He had a flat nose, with a line going over it and between his eyes. Petram's attire consisted of a black calf-length trench coat with white trims. Underneath his coat he wore a long-sleeve, white dress shirt, a black tie, and black trousers with black shoes covering his lower body. Over his left eye was a blue variant of the Tartarus symbol.

"Why rush? We can still have some fun along the way." Tyrant Beast Tragen said as he let out a snort.

Tragen was a tall muscular light brown skinned demon, around the same height as Ezel. He had a pair of curved horns sticking out of the sides of his head over his bull-like ears. He had light grey eyes, a golden nose ring, two scars running down his right eye, and he had black hair that was shaved at the side but went down to his shoulders along with a goatee on his chin. On his chest were two more, but larger scars. He wore spiky grey pauldrons with dark golden trims strapped to his shoulders. For his bottom half, Tragen wore grey armored plates hanging from his waist that covered his thighs, groin and rear. His legs were black bull legs with a tail sticking out from his rear. Bandages were wrapped around his hands along with gauntlets, revealing the tips of his fingers. He had the guild symbol on the right shoulder. Beside his chair was a large broadaxe.

"Pray, whisper." Black Priest Keith muttered while tapping the ground with his staff. "And then the blessings of the Underworld."

Befitting his title, Keith wore form-fitting robes with a high collar. The robe itself had a checkered pattern and covers a collared shirt and tie that Keith wore beneath. Around his face and on his head was an ornate headpiece, revealing the guild mark on it, and covered his jaw and fanning out over his head almost like a crown. What was most noticeable was that Keith was the only demon that did not have any nose, eye or skin but was instead just a skeleton with stitching on his mouth. In his right hand he carried a Khakkhara.

Rosa of the Morning Sun and the other remaining Demon Lords sat silently as Kyouka spoke again. "Hell has just begun." The Demon Lord's second-in-command stated, "Everything is for the sake of our Master's ambition. The hammers of the demons will descend upon mankind."

"Well said Kyouka." A voice from the entrance said.

Everyone looked towards the source and saw the Master of Tartarus walking towards them, Mard Geer right behind him. The Demon Lords ceased their conversations as the greatest Etherious walked past them, all eyes on him. "I am please to see so many old faces amongst us. As well as new faces too." E.N.D said as he sat down on his chair with Mard sitting to his left, a relaxed look on the Underworld King's face. "As I'm sure you all know Silver has gone and betrayed us. While this may seem upsetting I assure you that it changes nothing. However when he reappears I shall leave responsibility to you…Keith." The Master said as red eyes under the hood stared at the skeleton demon.

"Yes Master" Keith bowed in response.

The Master nodded before continuing. "As such I have promptly added a new member in the Demon Lords to fill in Silver's vacant spot. Everyone, say hello to Maradek of the Iron Cloud." E.N.D said as he motioned to the being in the far corner. Said person's entire body was covered in grayish blue armor. He also wore a helmet that had six eyeholes, three on each side. Over the armor he had a dark blue sleeveless robe, reaching his ankles with a hood attached that was currently over his helmet and a white fur neck collar attached. The robe was completely unzipped, revealing his chest plate. Around the waist was a grey loincloth underneath the robe. On his forehead and knee pads were green colored guild symbol.

"Maradek? Never heard of him." Torafusa said.

"He did go by another name but due to events a few years ago he lost his original body permanently. Upon receiving his new body he decided to change his name too." Mard Geer explained. "I assure you though that he will prove a most effective member."

"But let us move back to the topic at hand." The Master said as all eyes move towards him. "It has come to my attention that over these past centuries the world has forgotten about us, the Etherious." E.N.D commented before a sinister smile formed on his face. "That is something that I cannot tolerate. So having said that, Abaddon, Kyouka, what is the current number of our forces?"

"We have over at least 100,000 Legionaries ready for battle." Abaddon replied.

"And a total of 5,000 readied hybrids active and 20,000 of Etherious Hell Knights released from their books, Master." Kyouka responded.

The Master nodded before looking at the other Demon Lords. "I believe that we should remind the humans about us. So those who do not have an assignment shall be given the task of giving the humans a wake up calls."

The Demon Lords seem to get the hidden meaning behind those words and there were various reactions. Some remained indifferent to it; others merely smirked while the rest had bloodthirsty smiles forming on their faces. The Master merely smirked under his hood. "As Kyouka said, let us bring down the hammer of the demons onto humankind and reign in a new darkness to cover the world."

**(Hargeon Town, 8-Island Restaurant)**

At the restaurant called 8-Island, run by former Council Member Yajima, a discussion was going on between said man and two members of Fairy Tail's Raijinshuu. "This is terrible business." Yajima said as he read the newspaper in the kitchen.

"The council was bombed!?" Freed said in shock as he read over Yajima's shoulder.

"It seems like all nine council members died." Bickslow stated nearby.

"It get's worse. It seems that along with the council members, 119 were confirmed dead and wounded in all. Also all guards posted outside the building were reported to have mysteriously vanished during the attack. It's a huge catastrophe." Yajima commented.

"Good think you quit the council, huh?" Bickslow asked with a smile.

"You idiot! Have some tact!" Yajima growled.

"But it was, indeed, a stroke of luck, was it not?" Freed asked.

"You guys…" Evergreen said as she walked over to them while wearing a waitress uniform. "No matter how few customers we get you guys shouldn't laze about. Take your jobs more seriously."

"That getup doesn't suit you at all." Bickslow said in response with Freed nodding in agreement.

"I don't want to hear that from you guys!" Evergreen shouted at them. "It's because you were complaining about all the tough jobs flooding in after the Grand Magic Games. That's why we took an easy job, isn't it?"

"Working at a restaurant is hardly an easy job!" Yajima shouted in response.

Freed smirked as he chopped up some sausages. "Well, cooking is a specialty of mine so…"

"And when it comes to arrangement I'm quite skilled, baby!" Bickslow exclaimed as he added some flavor to completed dishes.

"Arrangement, arrangement!" His dolls repeated while flying around.

"Well, when push comes to shove, I can make sex appeal a specialty of mine." Evergreen said while posing on a counter.

By the way, Laxus-kun hasn't returned yet huh?" Yajima asked as he put down the newspaper.

"Did he get lost?" Bickslow wondered.

"He can't even run an errand, that guy's hopeless." Freed muttered.

Suddenly the front doorbell ringing caught Evergreen's attention. "Ah, speak of the devil!" She exclaimed, thinking it was Laxus.

However it was someone else. The person was a muscular male of imposing height. What could be seen under a hood he wore was what looked like a dark snout along with thin lips and a full, chin curtain beard circling his jaw line. His revealing attire showed his chest and stomach. The first part was a small black cape with an intricate lighter design on the edges covering his shoulders along with a hood that covered his face, with the tip of the hood curving upwards. Two, small strings located in front of his neck connected the open-upper cape. Underneath was an identical coat that covered his shoulders and hips, which was also opened. The coat also had long sleeves that ended at his wrists. For the bottom half he wore thick pants with a belt at the waist. It possessed two sets of knee guards protecting his knees along with knee-length heavy boots that had several strings tied around the sides.

Before anyone could speak the stranger murmured one word. "Cyclone" and suddenly a large tornado appeared out of nowhere, destroying the restaurant in an instant. It also sent the surprised Fairy Tail mages and Yajima flying. When it finally died down nothing of the restaurant was left standing.

"What is this guy!?" Yajima exclaimed before he noticed the stranger flying towards him, everything but his head coated in a tornado that tore apart all in its path.

"Yajima-san!" Evergreen shouted in alarm. Freed and Bickslow jumped in front of Yajima to intercept the assailant's attack. But it did little good as the attacker merely placed his hands on both mage's chest and mumbled, "Impact" and pushed the two back before slamming his fist onto the ground, causing a mini-earthquake. The attack sent Bickslow and Freed flying as well as seriously wound them.

The attacker made a grab for Yajima but said man merely used his Flattening Magic to avoid it and swirl around the attacker's arm. "Impudent. Inferno." The stranger said, with flames shooting out from his arm and struck Yajima, injuring him with several burns.

"Yajima-san!" Freed shouted from the ground. He tried to get up but the attack seemed to have left him paralyzed.

It was Evergreen who took on the attacker. "Fairy Machine Gun! Leprechaun!" Evergreen said while she waved her fan forward and fired a torrent of energy needles.

But the assailant did not seem faze by this. "Rumble" He said and released another tornado, albeit smaller this time. The tornado dispersed the attack and struck Evergreen dead on. She screamed in pain before crashing into rubble.

"Ever!" Freed exclaimed.

"This asshole…" Bickslow grunted.

The stranger approached Yajima. The former council member was too injured to move and could only stare at his assailant whom stood above him. "Who are you?" He demanded.

"I have no name. I am one of the Demon Lords, humans call me a Calamity." Tempesta the Immortal stated as he reached for Yajima.

"Shit, what is this magic?" Freed grunted. "My body won't move."

"The gates of hell have opened." Tempesta said as he lifted Yajima and began to choke him as wind swirled around his arm. "Judgment is upon humanity."

"Yajima-san!" Evergreen cried.

"Gates of hell, Tartarus!?" Bickslow said.

Freed's eyes widened in realization, "It can't be. These guys are after not just the current council members, but even the former ones as well!? Just what kind of objective do they have?" Freed said.

"Fall." Tempesta muttered as Yajima began to gasp.

"Stop it!" Bickslow cried.

"To hell." The demon finished as Yajima cried out in pain.

"Yajima-san!" Evergreen shouted.

Just as they feared the worse a bolt of lightning struck Tempesta's arm, stopping his wind and he lost his grip on Yajima. Then the demon was again struck by another bolt of lightning right in the chest. Tempesta glared at the newcomer while the Fairy Tail Mages and Yajima let out relieved smiles. "I may have gone astray on my way back here." Laxus said as he dropped the bag of grocery. "But when it comes to wiping the floor with you, the path is as clear as day." He finished as lightning sparked around his fists.

**(Elsewhere in Hargeon Town)**

In another location in the city, a cloaked man could be seen walking from the town's port. He moved through the streets at a fast pace, a destination in mind. He paused for a moment as he felt a surge of magic nearby.

"Damn looks like one already came. I better pick up the pace and hurry." The cloaked man said before he kept walking towards where a certain restaurant use to be.

**(Back with Laxus)**

Laxus was standing in the middle of the destroyed restaurant, staring down at Tempesta who was doing the same.

"Laxus-kun" Yajima grunted.

"Thank goodness." Freed breathed

"Hell yeah…" Bickslow said.

"Whose the chump?" Laxus asked, not taking his eyes off Tempesta.

"He's from Tartarus! He's after Yajima-san's head!" Evergreen yelled.

"Is that right?" Laxus asked before looking on in surprise as Tempesta tore off his coat. With it gone it revealed the rest of his face, including his loose hair going down his back with some strands going below his neck and covering parts of his cheekbone. He had a set of oval eyes and several strands of hair covering his forehead. He had a set of black pats on his shoulders and he let out a snort from his snout.

"You're…not human!?" Laxus exclaimed when he saw Tempesta's appearance.

"Cyclone." Was all Tempesta said as his body and arms were covered in cyclones and he shot towards Laxus at great speed. He launched a punch but the Lightning Dragon Slayer easily dodged it by turning into lightning. Laxus reappeared behind Tempesta and sent a strong kick into the demons' back before turning into lightning again.

As Tempesta got back up from the rubble he looked around for Laxus. "This guy…" He muttered before he saw Laxus appeared behind him again.

Glaring down at the demon, Laxus covered his fists with lightning. "Looks like you drew the short straw." He said before bringing both fists down on Tempesta's skull. "Lightning Dragon's Jaw!" Laxus cried as the attack created a large crater in the ground and ended the fight.

"Well done Laxus!" Freed said, now able to move again.

"Hell yeah!" Bickslow shouted in agreement.

"You're such a man's man!" Evergreen declared.

(Elsewhere Elfman let out a sneeze)

"Yajima-ossan, what should I do with the trash?" Laxus asked as he stood over the down Tempesta.

"Well the council is out of the question that's for sure." Yajima said while muttering, "My poor, poor restaurant."

"Not the main HQ sure but there must be other branches we can go too." Bickslow pointed out.

"Cut off the head and the body will follow." Yajima explained. "That's just how dependable they are to the council." Yajima stated while Bickslow let out a sigh of annoyance.

"In that case maybe we should take him to Fairy Tail for interrogation?" Freed suggested.

"Oh I love to do that." Evergreen chuckled as she tugs on a sausage link.

"They're clearly trying to kill ex-council members for some reason. I want to know their motives." Freed said.

"Indeed" Yajima said nodding in agreement.

"The queen is getting excited." Bickslow commented as he looked over at Evergreen who was playing with the food.

"Fairy…Tail…was it?" Tempesta said weakly as he came too, catching Laxu's attention. "To think that I would face off against the ones whom have brought pain to our Master so soon."

Laxus raised an eyebrow at that as Tempesta continued. "We didn't factor in humans being capable of this type of destructive force...so this type of damage output wasn't a variable in our equation." After several seconds of silence he continued. "There's no helping it, I'll have to sacrifice one of my lives…"

"What the hell are you blabbering about?" Laxus finally asked.

Glaring up at the Lightning Mage, Tempesta replied, "You're the one who drew the short straw. Remember that…human…"

"Get down!" A new voice suddenly yelled. Coming from behind Laxus a wave of ice encircled Tempesta just as his body exploded into black mist. The ice died down revealing that it had sealed in the black mist before it could spread.

"The hell!?" Bickslow cried in shock at the turn of events.

Laxus spun around and found himself staring at a cloaked man, his hand outstretched. "Whoa no need to get agitated boy." The cloaked man said as he raised his hands in defense upon seeing lightning circulating around Laxus. "Especially since I saved your life just now."

"What the hell do you mean? Who are you?" Laxus asked, not letting his guard down.

"One question at a time okay?" The cloak man said with a grin under his hood. "The black stuff there is magical barrier particles. If I didn't freeze it in time then you and everyone else in this town would've been infected."

"Magical barrier particles!" Yajima exclaimed.

"Yeah it destroys the Eterano in the atmosphere and pollutes it. Basically it's an Anti-Eterano Zone, causing magic deficiency and an illness that damages magic. Very lethal to wizards and sometimes normal people too." The cloak man explained. "Unfortunately this means that he's returned back to base to recreate his body so we'll be seeing him again, if he has the same form."

"And how do you know all this?" Freed asked. While they were grateful for the stranger in saving their lives, the fact he knows all this was disturbing.

"And thus we get to who I am." The man said as he removed his hood, revealing his face. He appeared to be in his thirties or forties, with marked facial features and a slight hint of wrinkles below his eyes. Said eyes were black along with his hair, the latter kept short and styled into a number of spiky strands pointing backwards, with some prominent ones topping his forehead. His thin sideburns reached down to the stubble covering the majority of his chin. A noticeable feature was a long and massive scar that extended from his hair line to his lower left ear along with his ears adorned by silver colored earrings that consisted of a ring with a little chain ending in a cross pendant. "My name is Silver and I was wondering if I could accompany you back to your guild? There's someone there I would like to meet and I can explain everything there." Silver said.

**(At Another Town)**

Kagura Mikazuchi of the Mermaid Heel Guild was making her way towards the train station. She had just completed a job request and was now on her way back to the guild to report her success with the jewels in hand and a bag of food she had picked up for the trip. Her sword, Archenemy, laid strapped to her left side.

She ignored the looks she got from passerby as well as the whispers from them as they recognized her from the Grand Magic Games. But she did take note of talk from the elder people, about the death of the Magic Council. Kagura recalled of how troubled her Guild Master was about this piece of news and how Tartarus, one of the three Dark Guilds of the Balam Alliance, supposedly did it. However Kagura's thoughts were cut off when she felt something tug on her grocery bag. Looking down the Gravity Mage was surprised to see that it was none other then Frosch, one of the Exceeds of the Sabertooth Guild.

"Hello there" She said, sounding polite to the toad-wearing Exceed. She handed him a cookie, which is what he was after. "Are you lost?"

Frosch had just taken the cookie when he responded. "Frosch not lost, Frosch is with Rogue."

Sure enough said Shadow Dragon Slayer appeared before the two, panting in exhaustion after looking for his Exceed friend. "There you are Frosch! I told you not to wander off like that!" Rogue said as he lightly scolded Frosch before taking him in his arms. It was then that Rogue took notice of the Mermaid Heel Mage. "Oh, Kagura-san…" Rogue said.

"Rogue" Kagura replied with an even voice. "Good to see you." She said.

"You too Kagura-san." Rogue replied. "Sorry about Frosch, sometimes he wanders off when he sees something of interest." He said while the Exceed chewed on the cookie.

"It's okay I was on my way to the train to head back to my Guild." Kagura explained before walking off.

"Mind if I join you?" Rogue said as he caught up. "I'm taking the same train too."

Kagura raised an eyebrow. "I thought that Dragon Slayers got motion sickness?"

Rogue's head dropped in depression. "Don't remind me. I'm just glad that I have Frosch here or else I would miss half the places I had to go." Rogue said.

The act caused a hidden smirk to form on Kagura's lips but she hid it well. The two humans plus cat were walking back in a comfortable silence though somehow people around them were talking amongst each other about how two powerful mages were walking alongside each other. Kagura caught the brief words of "date" that caused her to blush a little in embarrassment at the misassumption. Rogue however appeared that he didn't hear anything, though due to his enhanced hearing he most likely did but didn't react to it.

"So…have you heard about the Magic Council being bombed?" Rogue asked finally, breaking the silence.

Kagura nodded. "Yes I have. Quite surprising really." She said in response.

"Yeah it seems like it's got everyone worked up, especially since it was started by Tartarus." Rogue commented. "Sting is especially acting anxious since he just became Guild Master just a few weeks ago. Fortunately Yukino is there to keep him relaxed." Rogue said the last part with a smirk.

"Yukino likes Master Sting!" Frosch exclaimed from Rogue's arms, agreeing with his friend.

Kagura raised an eyebrow and was about to comment when suddenly an explosion appeared at the train station, not to far from them. Smoke rose to the sky as screams and shouts of people could be heard.

"What was that?" Rogue exclaimed as he looked at the smoke. He then noticed that Kagura had dropped her bags and ran towards the station, her sword in hand. "H-hey Kagura-san!" Rogue shouted as he chased after her, Frosch in arms.

At the train station, which was on fire, a maniac laughter could be heard from deep within. It showed Ezel laughing as he looked at the carnage. Around him were hundreds of Tartarus soldiers, or legionaries as they were called, along with dozens of human-demon hybrids and other Etherious of different shapes and sizes. The hybrids wore attires that they were given upon their transformation and the Tartarus soldiers had normal human-like forms, wearing the Tartarus uniform. However the rest were Hell Knights, real Etherious that didn't become Demon Lords, and used either Curses or Magic. They were all different shapes and sizes and some wore clothing and/or armor to suit their unique physics, and a few even had weapons too. The Tartarus legionaries were armed with different weapons ranging from the basic staves to spears, swords, shields, axes, maces, hammers and flails.

"Ha, ha! Now this is good! The Master rocks for giving me this assignment! Be even better if I could find someone who can give me a fight but oh well!" Ezel cheered hysterically. Then the four-armed demon turned towards the others. "Alright you bastards! Our Master's orders are to remind the fucking humans about what we Etherious can do! So get out there and raise as much hell as you can! Anyone not doing a damn thing is dead, got it?!" He ordered.

The response was cheers of agreement from the others as they spread out, causing mayhem in their path. Several Tartarus legionaries raised their staves and opened fire on a group of humans that were too slow to escape. However that was thwarted when out of nowhere Kagura appeared and deflected all of the attacks with her sheath sword. Then with great speed she dispatched the soldiers with ease, allowing the civilians to escape.

"Huh?" Ezel said when he saw Kagura in action. "Who the fuck is that?!"

"Ezel-sama! That's Kagura of Mermaid Heel!" A hybrid exclaimed.

Suddenly several more soldiers were blown back by a blast of shadows. Appearing from a hole in the wall was Rogue, several defeated grunts lying on the ground behind him. An Etherious Hell Knight tried to gain a jump on him but the Shadow Dragon Slayer was faster. "Shadow Dragon Slash!" Rogue yelled as he struck the hybrid with a fist of shadows and sent him flying back.

"And that's Rogue, one of the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth!" Another hybrid shouted.

"A Dragon Slayer huh?" Ezel muttered in interest as Rogue regrouped with Kagura.

"Kagura-san the remaining civilians have been evacuated. Frosch is keeping an eye on the exits." Rogue said.

Kagura nodded in confirmation before shifting her gaze towards Ezel, who was slowly approaching them. "It seems like this person is the one leading this force." Kagura commented.

Rogue's eyes widened as he took a sniff. "Something is off about these guys. They aren't humans! Are they demons?" Rogue exclaimed.

"What the hell was your first guess fucking brat!?" Ezel asked as he crossed his arms, making Rogue and Kagura take up stances. "Tenga Goken! Feel the power of my blades! Onimaru!" He yelled as he swung his arms outwards releasing a large shockwave in the shape of an X, launching it towards the two mages.

The two mages were taken aback by the sudden attack and barely had time to dodge it. Rogue had more luck but gained a few bruises from the attack while Kagura took the full brunt of it, trying to deflect it with her own sword. But eventually she was overwhelmed as the attack went through her and sliced the wall behind her, leaving a large X in its place. Kagura however managed to survive albeit with some injuries and her clothing torn up a bit.

"Hoh" Ezel said with a raised eyebrow. "You're pretty tough to survive that but can you keep it up?" Ezel asked as he released another shockwave blade from one of his arms at Kagura. Kagura managed to dodge it as she charged towards Ezel with incredible speed. She dodged other attacks launched by the Tartarus soldiers and hybrids before jumping above Ezel.

"Archenemy: Strong Form!" Kagura said as she slashed downwards towards Ezel. The demon raised his arms and blocked the strike, a crater forming underneath him from the attack's impact. But Ezel did not seem the least bit hindered by this as he effortlessly threw Kagura off. Swordswoman did a flip in mid air before landing a fair distance away from Ezel, the two glaring at one another.

"Shadow Dragon's Roar!" Ezel heard from his left. Turning his head the Demon Lord saw Rogue unleash a blast of shadows right at him. "Hahaha! Do you think that is enough to stop me?!" Ezel shouted as he waved all four of his arms just as the roar struck him. After a few seconds the shadows dispersed much to the surprise of Rogue, and revealed an unharmed Ezel with his arms out and a wicked grin on his face.

"Ezel-sama!" Legionaries of Tartarus shouted as they rushed towards him.

"You shitheads stay out of this! This is my fight!" Ezel roared at them, causing the soldiers to stop in their tracks. "You guys just destroy the town as ordered!" Ezel ordered.

Rogue and Kagura's eyes widened at that. "Kagura-san, go and help the civilians! I'll deal with this one." Rogue said to the Mermaid Heel Mage, determination in his face.

Kagura looked at the Dragon Slayer in shock but seeing the look in Rogue's eyes she bit back her retort. "Very well but come back unharmed. I wouldn't want that cat of yours to be upset if you fall." Kagura said as she ran off to intercept the soldiers and hybrids.

Rogue merely watched her go with a smirk before looking back at Ezel. "Don't tell me you shits think you can actually stop us?" Ezel asked mockingly. "More or less don't think that you alone can stop one of the Demon Lords of Tartarus?!" He exclaimed.

'_Tartarus!'_ Rogue thought before Ezel continued. "Furthermore do you really think that this is the only town that we're attacking?" The demon asked as he charged at Rogue.

And Ezel was speaking the truth, as the dark guild was moving even now. In several other locations, where cities, towns and other large populated places, many of them with guilds, the forces of Tartarus could be seen moving towards them. They moved swiftly and stuck to the shadows, making sure to take these places by surprise.

**(At Fairy Tail)**

"Yajima! Laxus! What on earth happened to you guys!?" Makarov exclaimed when he saw his old teammate, grandson and his team appear at the guild, battered and bruised.

"We had a run in during the job." Laxus said while Yajima got into a depress mood at the reminder of his destroyed restaurant.

"A member of Tartarus attacked us." Freed explained causing others to gasp. "Apparently he was after Yajima's head. Seems like they're hunting down former council members too."

"What? Why would they be after former council members?" Gray asked before taking note of the hooded man. "And who is that guy?" Gray asked.

"The attacker managed to defeat the three of us" Freed said. "But in return he was defeated by Laxus. However near the end the dark mage was about to do something when this person," Pointing to the hooded man who walked forward. "Saved us by freezing the black mist in ice."

"Hey…" Gajeel said getting everyone's attention. He was looking at the hooded man. "This guy's stench is like ice stripper here." The Iron Dragon Slayer commented.

"The same scent as Gray-sama's perfume!?" Juvia exclaimed with wide eyes and blush on her cheeks, staring between Gray and the cloak man.

"Huh he does?" Laxus asked.

"WHAT KIND OF DRAGON SLAYER ARE YOU IF YOU CAN'T EVEN SMELL SOMETHING SO OBVIOUS!?" Gajeel roared at the Second Generation Dragon Slayer.

However everything was silenced by the cloak man's laugh. "What a lively guild you've join, I can see why you've gotten this far." The man said as he removed his hood, revealing his face to the rest of the Fairy Tail mages. When one person saw his face his eyes widened as if he was seeing a ghost. "You've grown into a fine young man…Gray." Silver said.

Everyone turned their eyes towards the Ice Mage to see that he had frozen stiff and almost seem to be on the brink of tears. One word escaped his lips that despite being soft the entire guild heard it. "…Dad?"

**And there we go! I thought that the scene with Silver saving Laxus and the others was a good choice for a turning point. Plus you got to know some of the OC Demon Lords! Review! More reviews get's me to be more incline to keep going!**

**Wacko12**


	3. Demons and Fairies Move Out

**Time for the third chapter and some insight of how E.N.D came back to Tartarus! Remember to review at all times!**

**(Tartarus HQ, Hell's Core)**

"My apologies for being a burden Kyouka." Tempesta said, as his body was staying afloat in a tube of strange liquid, slowly reforming itself.

"There is no need for formalities Tempesta." Kyouka said as she stood outside the tube, overlooking her fellow Demon Lord's rebirth.

"Tempesta…so that is my name?" Tempesta muttered. "Every time I gain a new body I forget my name. To me now names have no meaning." He said before changing topic. "How long will it take me to regenerate?"

"Hmm normally it would take one day. However as of now we're also working on another so the process will take more time." Kyouka replied.

Tempesta's eyes widened. "Another? Have we suffered a casualty?" He asked.

"No, not a casualty. A new comrade actually." Kyouka said with a smirk as she turned towards another tube that held Minerva Orlando, currently unconscious. "Minerva. The Master has deemed her abilities of use for the Netherworld."

"I pray she as of more use then that failure Doriate-san." Franmalth chuckled. "Most of our hybrids are incapable of achieving a full Etherious Form and those that can usually lose their senses."

"Franmalth…" Kyouka said as the one-eyed demon approached her. "I thought you would be at the communication room coordinating our force's operations?"

"Lord Mard Geer has taken over. I was sent by the Master to get a report from Tempesta-san." Franmalth explained.

"I failed my assignment and was forced to sacrifice my body." Tempesta said regrettably. "I shall accept any punishment the Master decides."

"Gehehe don't be so glum Tempesta-san. The Master is more relieved that you were able to return safely. And while the fact that you misused the Magical Barrier Particles he has decided not to punish you." Franmalth said. "However I wonder how much this little incident shall cost us. It's most likely that the former councilor will be well hidden this time. And those Magical Particles aren't cheap either."

"Fairy Tail…" Tempesta growled. "If not for their interference this would've never had happened."

"Fairy Tail?" Kyouka repeated.

At the sound of the name, Minerva began to shake about inside her tube, an angry look on her face. "My, my, it seems that the young dearer is a bit agitated by the name." Franmalth commented.

"Fairy Tail…" Kyouka muttered, her eyes narrowed, "The guild that took down both the Six Demons and Grimoire? And the ones that cause our Master pain?" Kyouka said. "Hmmm I wonder…will these Fairies resist us?"

"It was not just Fairy Tail." Tempesta said getting the two Demon Lord's attention. "Silver was also there. His ice sealed the Magical Barrier Particles from spreading."

"It appears as though the Master was correct." Franmalth said. "Silver would eventually show himself. Now that we know his location we should inform our Master and move in with our plan to eliminate the traitor."

As Franmalth walked away Tempesta looked at Kyouka. "What has happened while I was gone?" The Calamity Curse Demon asked.

"The Master has order our forces to attack certain places of interest while some of the Demon Lords continue to assassinate the former council members." Kyouka replied. "Including yourself, a few of the other Lords are on standby while the rest have split, with one leading our forces in attacking various Guild occupied towns, while the others are eliminating the former council members. Abaddon-sama is on a special assignment given to be the Master."

"I see" Tempesta said. "Then I hope I regenerate soon, I wish to be of use to Master E.N.D." He said.

Kyouka smirked. "Do not worry Tempesta, he will still have need of you so just replenish your strength for now." She said before walking off.

**(Back at Fairy Tail)**

"And that's what happened." Silver said, finishing his story.

Everyone stared at the man, who was revealed to be Silver Fullbuster, Gray's father (Much to Juvia's excitement) having been reborn as a living corpse seventeen years ago after his death by Deliora. The person responsible was a Necromancer in Tartarus. Since that day Silver had planned to have revenge for the death of his family as he had assumed that Gray died all those years ago along with him and his wife. Silver had joined the demon filled guild Tartarus and mastered Ice Devil Slayer Magic to slay demons, slowly weakening Tartarus secretly. A few years ago Mard Geer had given him the position as one of the Nine Demon Gates.

"It was only until the Grand Magic Games when I learned you were alive Gray." Silver said as he stared at his son, whom merely looked right back at him. "Learning that, along with several other variables, I decided to flee Tartarus and seek you out since I knew that your guild would be the only ones capable of defeating Tartarus."

"Dad…" Gray said as he looked at his father. Even now this all felt like a dream to him.

"I do not mean to be rude…" Erza said interrupting the moment. "But why did you freeze Sun Village in the first place? If you were hunting down demons in secret then why attack a place with no demons?" The Knight asked.

"That was a mistake on my part." Silver replied embarrassed. "I had thought the flames were of demonic origin or to be precise was where E.N.D's body was located."

"The body?" Makarov repeated.

Silver let out a sigh before speaking. "I should probably explain several important changes about Tartarus. Changes you need to know if you wish to stand a chance of defeating them. The first is that seven years ago on December 16th X784, the soul of E.N.D returned to Tartarus."

"Wait a minute!" Lucy exclaimed. "That's when Acnologia attacked us on Tenrou Island and we were frozen in time for seven years!"

"Could those two things be connected?" Erza thought out loud.

"But wait Silver-san it sounds like you're saying E.N.D was sealed or something?" Mirajane spoke.

"I'm not sure on the full details but apparently after founding the guild E.N.D went into some kind of slumber or something similar to it." Silver said. "All I know is that a part of E.N.D was kept by Mard Geer until seven years ago. At that time when he returned, the remaining Etherious around the world rejoined Tartarus."

"What's an Etherious? Also weren't all of Zeref's demons already with Tartarus?" Erza asked.

"For the first question Etherious is the actual name for demons from the Books of Zeref. A way to separate them from other demons." Silver replied. "And for the second question, E.N.D is the most powerful demon Zeref ever created. His mere presence united all of his kind behind him. After his slumber or whatever, another Etherious named Mard Geer, took command of Tartarus. Now while Mard is very powerful, there are other Etherious who could match his strength. Furthermore not all agreed with Mard's rule and promptly left the guild. That or weren't interest and were only part of it because of E.N.D."

"But the moment that E.N.D returned they all came back." Summarized Makarov.

Silver nodded. "It was as if a beacon became active. The moment his soul returned all the Etherious came back to Tartarus. It was also when E.N.D changed the Nine Demon Gates to the Demon Lords. And several weeks ago Mard Geer recovered his body and E.N.D was made whole. I have no idea what he looks like because I had to flee when I was cornered by several Demon Lords."

"What are those? Some kind of group?" Elfman asked.

"Yes the Nine Demon Gates were the core members of Tartarus and as the title says, consisted of only nine people." Silver said. "However with so many strong Etherious now joining, E.N.D renamed the group the Demon Lords, a group that has a total of twenty-nine members."

"Twenty-Nine!?" Lucy exclaimed in shock and worry that there were so many that were of the same level as the one that attacked the Raijingshu and Yajima.

"Well I was a member too so with my defection it's now twenty-eight." Silver commented. "However you shouldn't underestimate them, especially the leader, Abaddon. His power is equal to Mard and if you see him don't fight him no matter what. I don't even know his full capabilities since he always kept to himself."

"What other changes happened over the past seven years?" Laxus asked.

"Well just a few days after his soul returned, Tartarus began attacking dark guilds affiliated with Oracion Seis and Grimoire Heart." He noticed the shocked and confused looks on the Fairy Tail Mages' faces. "To an outsider it would seem that Tartarus was just removing any possible threats and try to reign over all the Dark Guilds. And while that did cause the Magic Council to be concern that is far from the truth. The reason why Tartarus was doing this is because they forcibly conscripting potential human mages into their guild…by turning them into demons."

"What? Turning humans into demons!? Is that even possible?" Gray asked.

"You've already met one back at Sun Village, Gray." Silver said causing his son to remember about his battle with Doriate the mage that used Law of Regression. "Tartarus has a room called Hell's Core, which can be used not just to modify humans into Etherious, but also revive fallen members whom have made a pact with the Underworld King. So now they have a large force that consists of both Etherious and Hybrids."

"Revive the dead!" Erza said. "Is that even possible?"

"The ability was bestowed onto Mard by E.N.D who has knowledge to the Black Arts just like Zeref. E.N.D wants a large army of demons under his command for his operation." Silver explained.

"And what is this plan? Does it involve the members of the Magic Council?" Freed asked.

"They serve a very important part actually, both the current and former." Silver said. "Tartarus goal is to activate FACE."

Yajima suddenly turned pale at the name, something everyone else noticed. "F-FACE!? How on in Mavis's name did Tartarus learn of FACE!?" Yajima asked.

"Yajima do you know what this FACE is?" Makarov asked his old friend.

Yajima was silent for a moment before speaking. "An ancient weapon of the Magic Council, which is on the same scale of the Etherion but greater: It's a magic pulse bomb that if used, will wipe out all magic on the continent."

Everyone gasped in horror. A bomb that could remove all magic on the continent in an instant. "Damn it what the hell was the council thinking of making such a weapon?" Gajeel asked.

"Wait if it will remove all magic then won't that include the members of Tartarus?" Lucy asked Silver.

"Unfortunately the members of Tartarus do not use Magic." Silver revealed. "Excluding the hybrids all the core members of Tartarus, including the Demon Lords, use Curses, something that is different from Magic. It also isn't affected by thing that would normally neutralize or effect magic in any other way."

"So while all our magic is gone Tartarus and their curses will be able to rule over us with no challenge." Pantherlily summarized.

"That's pretty much it." Silver said.

"Well it won't be that simple as it sounds like." Yajima commented. "From what I've heard of there are three keys to activating FACE. These keys are merged with three former Council Members through Organic Link Magic."

"And only by killing the three members will FACE be released." Makarov finished.

"Then our goal is clear." Erza said getting everyone's attention. "We must find and protect the former council members at all cost."

"I know the addresses of most of them except the former Chairman." Yajima replied.

"I can also tell you as well as the abilities of some of the Demon Lords. Before I left I also learned of their location as well as Tartarus' source of information." Silver added. "The Ex-Chairman Crawford Seam."

"The Ex-Chairman is aligned with a Dark Guild!?" Lisanna said in shock, a feeling shared by the others.

"Not much of a surprise." Yajima said. "Crawford always was a power grabber. It wouldn't come of a shock to me if he allied himself with a Dark Guild if it promised him a chance of higher stature."

"Then we should capture the Ex-Chairman ourselves." Erza said. "Though Silver-san probably knows much about their plans, since he defected from Tartarus, they most likely rearranged their strategy with the Ex-Chairman knowing it too."

"I agree with you Erza." Makarov said. "I think you and Mirajane should go and get him. Yajima can tell you his location and there's a good chance Tartarus might send someone strong to protect/retrieve the Ex-Chairman."

"And what will the rest of us be doing?" Gray asked.

"Silver and Yajima can give you the addresses of the former council members. Even if we don't know which of them have the keys it's important we protect all of them either way." Makarov replied.

"Everyone!" Romeo shouted as he opened the main door. "There's news about demons attacking towns and cities all over the continent!"

"What!?" Everyone shouted.

"Its most likely Tartarus's doing. With the Magic Council now in ruins, E.N.D wants to eliminate or weaken the strength of the continent's guild and military might and at the same time assassinating the former council members in the confusion." Silver said.

"Then we've got to help those towns!" Levy said.

"As much as I would like to agree with you Levy, this takes greater importance." Makarov replied grimly. "If Tartarus activates FACE then saving those towns will mean nothing. Besides I'm sure the other guilds are acting too. We'll have to put our faith in them." Then the Guild Master turned towards his family. "Now everyone I'll assign you into groups and you'll all go to the addresses of the former council members. And at the same time Erza and Mirajane will go and capture the Ex-Chairman! We cannot allow these people to bring harm and death to our homes just for their own gain!" Sounds of cheers were given back in response.

"Actually Makarov-san I'll need to borrow Gray for a while if you don't mind." Silver said as he put a hand on his son's shoulder. "I need to teach him how to use my magic, Ice Devil Slayer magic. Having two Devil Slayers is better then one."

"Gray?" Makarov asked the young Ice Mage.

Without even hesitating Gray replied back to the Master. "If I can help put down these bastards quicker then it's fine by me." Gray said as he slammed his left fist into his right palm. Silver smirked at his son's determination.

"Juvia will also go with Gray-sama and his father too!" Juvia declared as she latched herself to Gray's arm, much to Gray's discomfort and Silver's amusement, who only raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"Sorry Juvia but you'll be joining one of the groups to protect the former council members." Makarov said to the water mage. Juvia had a depress cloud over her head at that. Normally she would try to argue by saying some illogical reason but she couldn't argue with the Master.

"That's quite the interesting girl you got there Gray." Silver commented off handily as the two Fullbusters walked off. "She'd make a fine daughter-in-law!" Silver shouted before laughing.

"Dad!" Gray shouted in embarrassment while Juvia had gone into fantasying about being 'Juvia Fullbuster' much to everyone's amusement.

**(With Rogue)**

"Shadow Dragon's Roar!" Rogue cried as he fired another roar of shadows at Ezel. The demon merely smirked as he once again used his four arms to disperse the shadows. "Hahaha! Is this all you can do punk?" Ezel shouted as he launched a barrage of slashes at Rogue. The Shadow Dragon Slayer managed to dodge most of them but a few were able to land hits on him. "Then this fucking fight is going to end quickly!"

Rogue growled as he quickly turned his body into shadows and zoomed towards Ezel at impressive speed. He soon reached Ezel and before the Demon Lord could react Rogue struck. "Shadow Dragon's Crushing Fang!" And Rogue released shadows from his hand that struck Ezel right in the face, sending the demon skidding back a few feet. Ezel's face was slightly bruised but rather then being annoyed of it the demon seemed to have become excited. "Ha! Maybe this won't be so boring after all!" Ezel declared as he launched more slashes this time leaving a cut on Rogue's left arm. Rogue winced but managed to jump out of the way and make some distance between him and Ezel.

'_Damn! This guy is really sturdy! Guess I better take this up a level."_ Rogue thought as he gathered shadows around him and soon his body was covered in an aura of shadow. His eyes became obscured, only showing red blank irises could be seen. "Shadow Drive…" Rogue muttered.

"The hell?" Ezel muttered before his eyes widened as Rogue charged at him again, moving much faster this time. Rogue appeared right behind Ezel and released a powerful kick on Ezel's back. "Son of a bitch!" Ezel yelled as he tried to hit Rogue. But thanks to his Shadow Drive, Rogue was able to morph into the shadows around him, becoming intangible and dodge Ezel's attacks.

"And now…" Rogue said as he turned into shadows before wrapping himself around Ezel. "Shadow Dragon's Waxwing Flash!" Rogue cried as he released a torrent of shadows from his hands, becoming tangible and struck Ezel in a barrage of shadows, the demon flying into the air.

Ezel crashed onto the ground but quickly recovered himself and got into another pose. "Now things are getting interesting. Let's see how you stand up to this, Juzumaru!"

Ezel unleashed another X-shaped slash just like Onimaru. Only this one took the form of a cross with a clean center and linear arms. The attack struck Rogue head on who felt himself being launched backwards by the attack and going through a wall. The move dispersed Rogue's Shadow Drive and gave him several cuts. Rogue could now be seen lying on the ground, slowly getting back up. _'Damn that attack completely broke through my Shadow Drive. Though if it weren't for that I would probably be a lot worse off.'_ Rogue thought as he got back to his feet. He just barely had enough time to dodge a body slam from Ezel.

Acting quickly Rogue formed a ball of shadows in his hand and then threw it at the ground. "Shadow Dragon's Eruption!" Rogue yelled as a geyser of shadows erupted from underneath Ezel. The demon was once more tossed into the air with a few scratches on his body. "I actually felt that one!" Ezel yelled excitedly as he fired more slashes at Rogue.

"Shadow Dragon's Scales!" Rogue shouted as he fired a barrage of shadow projectiles from the palm of his hand. Scales and slashes collided and canceled each other out.

Dust began to gather around the area but Rogue could still hear Ezel's laughter. "Man this is so much fun! Guess I'll have to really go out. Mika-"

Rogue raised an eyebrow when he heard Ezel paused just before finishing his spell. As the dust cleared Rogue saw that Ezel had a look of confusion and annoyance on his face. "What? Fall back? Deal with fairies? What the hell I was just having some-" Ezel's rant paused before looking a little pale. "F-fine! I get it!" He grumbled before glaring at Rogue. "You got fucking lucky you shithead! Next time we meet I'm going to spread your damn corpse across the ground!" Ezel roared before running off, leaving a confused Rogue behind.

"Rogue!" A voice from behind shouted.

Turning around Rogue saw Kagura approach with Frosch in her arms. The Mermaid Heel mage was a bit bruised but looked fine. "What happened? Where did the demon go?" Kagura asked as she reached Rogue. Frosch happily jumped from her arms into Rogue's.

"I don't know." Rogue said as he comforted his Exceed companion.

"That bastard could've possible killed me but suddenly he acted strange and then left. I think someone communicated with him VIA telepathy." The Shadow Dragon Slayer explained.

"The invaders also fled just moments ago." Kagura explained, her sheath sword in her left hand. "Either way this town is safe. I need to head back to my guild and see what else has happened. This can't have been the only town that they attacked." She said before heading off, leaving Rogue and Frosch to themselves.

"Frosch likes here." The Exceed said suddenly. Rogue smirked at his friend before frowning as he thought of Ezel's words involving fairies. A terrible feeling went up Rogue's spine as he began figuring out what or rather whom the demon was referring too. "Frosch we're contacting Sting." The Shadow Dragon Slayer said.

**(Tartarus HQ, Communication Room)**

Mard Geer sat on a throne-like chair as he stared at the large screen floating in the air, with several smaller screens surrounding it. All of them were showing pictures of the Dark Guild's forces attacking various places in Fiore. Down below several levels were Tartarus soldiers busy at work with Franmalth coordinating them. Mard had his usual calm look on his face as he stared at the carnage on the screens.

The Underworld King heard the door opening and realized that it was the Master. Getting up from his seat he bowed before the first Etherious. "Master the attacks are going well. Our forces are facing little resistance minus a few Rune Knights and mages from Legal Guilds. We've also received word of Silver's location too and that several of the former council members have been eliminated." Mard reported only for E.N.D to walk past him towards the screen, his cloak flowing behind him. Curious, Mard looked at the back of his Master, who was busy staring at images on the screens.

"Look at it Mard." E.N.D said. "Everyone is having so much fun out there. Flames you can even see from outside the castle." A small smile formed on E.N.D's lips as he kept looking. "It's so beautiful isn't it?"

"It is indeed quite a sight Master." Mard said as he stood beside his old comrade. "The beauty of seeing the humans face their destined fate can be quite pleasing."

E.N.D nodded in agreement. "Do you remember the last time we saw something similar to this? It must've been over 400 years ago during the Dragon Civil War when our race was still young. I had just founded our Guild before I was forced into slumber. These past four centuries you have taken my place and ensured both Tartarus' but the Etherious' survival while safeguarding my book." E.N.D then put his bandaged right hand on Mard's left shoulder. "I never gotten the chance to thank you for that my old friend." E.N.D said.

"You honor me with your words Master. I merely did my duty." Mard said sincerely as he bowed his head.

"I wish to see our dream fulfilled Mard Geer." E.N.D said as he turned his attention back to the screens. "I wish to see our people stand above the humans, to no longer be forced into hiding and bring forth the world we envisioned. And I want you to be there, by my side, when we reach our goal." The Guild Master of Tartarus looked back at Mard. "You have never failed me before Mard Geer. I shall be counting on you to see our goal fulfilled."

Mard Geer bowed again, his eyes closed and his left hand over his chest. "Without a second hesitation Master E.N.D."

The Master nodded. "That being said, I assume that you've taken care of the Silver problem." E.N.D said.

"I have Master." Mard said. "I've sent Keith along with Ezel, Askari, Homoru and Niebla with him along with their forces to deal with Silver. Even if he's not there at the moment it would be good to rid us of those Fairy Tail mages, something you've always wanted."

"That is good." E.N.D said as he raised his right hand and looked at it. "I don't know why but whenever I hear of them, I feel an indescribable pain flowing through me. Memories of people and places I cannot recall and for some reason or another I see bright yellow hair and brown eyes." The Demon muttered as he now clutched his right shoulder. "I don't know what it means but I cannot stand it."

E.N.D soon spun around and headed towards the exit. "Inform me when they reach the guild. Then send me an image of the progress to my chambers." The Master said before walking out the door.

"As you wish." Mard Geer said before returning to the task at hand.

**(With Erza and Mirajane)**

"Erza if what Silver-san said is true then it's possible that they'll target Jellal." Mirajane said to Erza as the redhead released the large reindeer they had ridden to the former chairman's house. "Perhaps you should be looking for Jellal rather then being here. I'm sure I can handle the chairman."

Erza smiled as she patted the reindeer, before letting it go. "Even I can't find Jellal. So it won't be easy for Tartarus to find him. And you know how strong he is; he wasn't a Ten Wizard Saint for nothing. Besides he has Meredy with him, he'll be fine. More importantly" Erza frowned as she stared at the humble-looking house in the center of the clearing. "Considering his importance, we can only assume that whatever Tartarus has protecting the chairman is something not to underestimate."

"True, but don't forget we're S-class mages of Fairy Tail. There hasn't been a single thing we couldn't handle alone and with both of us, I don't think anything can stop us." Mirajane said confidently. Erza nodded in agreement before putting on a serious face as she summoned a sword. Quietly the two young women approached the house with Erza taking the lead. After several knocks on the door Erza deemed it safe and they entered with caution. But what greeted them was quiet living room with nothing out of the ordinary.

"Hello?" Mirajane asked as she closed the door behind her. Erza was already looking around for any clues. "Ex-Chairman?" Mirajane added.

"I don't see anything out of place." Erza commented. "Or any signs of force entry or a fight."

Suddenly the sound of someone sipping a drink could be heard. The two girls froze in surprise, completely taken off guard for having not sensed it before. Slowly Erza and Mirajane turned around towards the fireplace, looking at the couch that faced away from them. The back of a head could be seen where it appeared like the person was drinking some tea. "Who are you!?" Erza demanded as she raised her sword threateningly towards the stranger. Both she and Mirajane got out of their shock and were ready for a battle.

Far from scared or worried, the person merely finished his tea before placing it on the coffee table. "My apologies." The man said as he slowly got up. "I merely wanted to finish this surprisingly good tea. I did not expect humans to create something so good." The person commented.

Mirajane caught onto the 'humans' part and her eyes widened. "You're from Tartarus?" She asked.

"Correct allow me to introduce myself." The demon said as he fully stood up, before a heavy and dark pressure was released, covering the entire house and even beyond that. Both female mages were astounded by the large amount of demonic power released from the demon, who slowly turned around, placing his right hand on the couch's arm. A calm look was on his face as he said his name. "I am Abaddon Apollyon, leader of the Demon Lords of Tartarus."

**And there is chapter 3! What do you think? Also as spoiler next chapter will feature Erza and Mirajane fight Abaddon, Tartarus attacking Magnolia, Silver preparing to train Gray and both Gajeel's group and Laxus's facing off against members of the Demon Lords while protecting their respective former council members. You'll also get to see some of the OC demon's curses too!**

**Leave Reviews!**

**Wacko12**


	4. Fairies and Demons Clash Part 1

**And now we're at the point where the demons of Tartarus will clash with the mages of Fairy Tail. This is a chapter I've been waiting to do as it kind of let's me say my thoughts concerning Erza's personality. Might seem harsh but hey some lessons are learned better the hard way.**

**(Erza and Mirajane)**

As she gazed towards the demon calling himself Abaddon, Mirajane knew that this person was strong, very strong. If it weren't the demonic presence he was leaking out then Mira would also know from how he was standing. His body posture was calm and composed, as if he wasn't nervous of facing against two S-class mages at once. She also recalled how Silver had warned them about avoiding fighting Abaddon if they could, that only solidified that this demon was dangerous.

"We were aware that Silver had made contact with your guild, since his son is a member of Fairy Tail." Abaddon said calmly, breaking Mira from her thoughts. "Because of that we took precaution to have the Ex-Chairman moved back to our HQ. I was ordered by our Master to remain here and deal with you two when you arrived."

Erza narrowed her eyes. "E.N.D knew that us two specifically would come?" She demanded.

Abaddon glared at Titania for a moment before replying. "Indeed though I would appreciate that you wouldn't say the Master's name so casually." Abaddon said.

Erza kept her eyes on the demon, waiting for him to make a move or an opening for to make one. However something off to the side caught her eye, something in a trashcan. Her eyes widened as Erza Scarlet recognized said object and her grip on her sword faltered. "I-is that…"

Abaddon raised an eyebrow in curiosity before turning his head slightly towards the trashcan, Mirajane doing the same however the latter expressed disbelief at what Erza was referring too so dramatically. "Yes that would be strawberry cake." Abaddon said as he motioned towards the said cake in the garbage. "I wasn't really fond of it so I threw it out."

No sooner had he said that his face was struck straight on by Erza's armored fist. "HOW DARE YOU DO THAT TO A DELICIOUS SWEET!" Erza roared with fury in her eyes, her face taking on what it usually does when the great Titania was enraged.

Mirajane sweat dropped at her fellow S-class mage's actions before planting her face in her palm. _'Of course that get's her mad.' _ Mira thought to herself.

"Seriously?" Abaddon's voice said, catching both women's attention. From her fist you could see that not only was Abaddon unharmed by Erza's punch, but had a look of what appeared to be annoyance. "You got so mad over some cake that you would punch me?" Abaddon asked again as he easily gripped Erza's wrist and moved it from his face. Erza let out grunts of pain as she tried, unsuccessfully, to resist Abaddon's grip. "How immature…" The demon said before landing a punch of his own into Erza's face.

Unlike Erza's, Abaddon's punch actually did some damage as the redhead girl was sent backwards. "Erza!" Mirajane cried out before a large blast of energy was released from Abaddon's fist. The blast caused an explosion that destroyed the entire house and everything with a 1-mile radius.

"You two are suppose to be some of the most powerful members of your human guild…of course that's what I hear from our sources." Abaddon said moments later as the dust from the explosion began to settle. He stood in the center of the former house without a scratch on him. Ahead of him were two slightly bruised but still conscious mages. Both of them had already activated their respective magic; Mirajane had gone into her Satan Soul Mode while Erza was wearing her Black Wing Armor. There was blood running down Erza's forehead down to her lips, courtesy of Abaddon's punch earlier. "I hope that you two prove that those stories are true." Abaddon said.

"Gladly." Mirajane said. Then she took a glance at Erza. "You okay?"

"I've felt worse." Erza said as she wiped the blood from her face. "You know I believe that this is the first time that we fought alongside together?" She commented offhandedly.

Mirajane smirked. "Then let's show him how we Fairy Tail mages fight." She added as the two women looked back at Abaddon who removed his cloak.

**(Back in Tartarus)**

"Report! Torafusa-sama reports that three cities in the western sector have suffered heavy casualties!" A soldier said to Mard Geer.

"Tragen-sama and Rosa-sama have reported similar results and have engaged a group of Rune Knights and Guild Mages confirmed to be from Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus Guild!" Another Tartarus soldier said.

"We've received word from Broma-sama! Target has been neutralized, no changes in FACE's seal." A third soldier said.

Lord Mard Geer-sama!" A Tartarus soldier cried as he ran up towards said person.

The Underworld King, sitting calmly on his throne above the command center and Kyouka by his side, turned towards the messenger. "Yes what is it?" He asked.

"We've received word from Keith-sama. He and the other Demon Lords and their forces have gathered outside the town housing the human guild Fairy Tail. They await your word." The soldier said. "Also the Ex-Chairman has arrived and Abaddon-sama has engaged two S-class mages from the same guild."

"S-class mages huh?" Mard pondered before a smirk formed on his face. "How foolish. He may be a bit stern but if the humans hope to defeat Abaddon then they should've sent more people. Oh well." He mumbled.

"Aside from that however, it seems as if though things are moving a little bit slower then expected." Kyouka added.

"True, despite it being a diversion the humans are putting up a better fight then I anticipated." Mard Geer said in agreement.

"If you permit me to go without restraint." A voice from behind began. "Then such variables wouldn't even exist."

Mard, Kyouka and the Tartarus soldier turned around to see a person approach. The person was tall, even taller then the other Demon Lords. He had a grey stone-like skin with crack lines, and a muscular build, with broad shoulders that were connected to very long, long arms that almost reached the ground. He wore black gi pants that were tucked into long golden sandals that went slightly passed his ankles. He had a yellow sash around his waist holding his pants. For the upper part of his body was a black chest plate with shoulder pads that had golden trims. Along with that were long black gloves over his hands. Finally he wore a stylized Greek helmet on top of his head, covering most of his face too. Underneath the helmet you could see that the demon had purple eyes, with flat teeth in his mouth.

"Black Lance Shengyin…" Mard said as he looked at the large Demon Lord. "While it is true that your curse is well-suited for dealing with large amounts of people and wide-spread places, your curse is also very useful in protecting the Cube as well as the Master." Mard finished.

"Guarding the Master is unnecessary. No one will be able to find Cube, not even Silver." Shengyin retorted. "And no one can harm Master E.N.D. You of all people should know this, Lord Mard Geer. Having me stay back is a waste of power and will make it longer for us in reaching our goal."

"Shengyin" Kyouka began. "You have your orders. Do not act like a spoiled child. The time will come for you to be sent to the battlefield."

Seeing how neither would budge Shengyin relented and backed down before walking away. Once he was gone Mard turned his attention towards the Tartarus soldier, who had been sitting silently on the sidelines. "Back to the matter of Fairy Tail has there been any confirmation of Silver's presence?"

"No Lord Mard Geer-sama, but we did detect a brief magic output before vanishing. We believe that it was someone using Teleportation Magic." The soldier replied.

"That must've been Silver." Kyouka commented. He was the only person she knew that uses that form of magic. "However it doesn't make sense as to why he would leave so suddenly unless…" Her eyes widened at the realization.

"It appears as though father wishes to past his legacy onto son." Mard finished calmly. "Very well tell Keith he may commence at the attack. With Silver gone it will be much easier for them to crush that pesky guild. And be sure to send an image to the Master's chambers when it starts." Mard ordered the soldier.

**(Fairy Tail)**

"How's it going?" Makarov asked Cana.

It had been several hours since Fairy Tail had decided to locate the former council members and the sun was just going down. Silver and Gray had already left by then for parts unknown, much to Juvia's disappointment. This left the rest of the guild to find and protect the former council members. Laxus and the Rajingshu had left to find Michello. Gajeel, Pantherlily and Shadow Gear went to find Belno, whom Gajeel seemed to have a history with while Elfman and Lisanna went to find a council member named Leiji (A/N: He's the council member with the glasses, hood over his head and huge sideburns. I changed characters just because I felt it was kind of stupid in the manga that they didn't show him, even if he was killed off screen).

"No nothing yet." Cana said as she sat on a table, several of her magic communication cards laid out while a barrel of beer was on the other side. "It's possible that with all the havoc Tartarus is causing everywhere they're having trouble reaching the former council members." Cana suggested.

"I hope not." Makarov commented grimly. "It makes me feel like Tartarus is just using the carnage to slow us down and give their members time to further their plans."

At a nearby table Lucy was sitting with Happy, Wendy, Carla, Lisanna and Juvia, the water mage sulking that she couldn't go with her beloved Gray-sama.

"How much longer are you going to moan?" Carla asked Juvia. "It's very inappropriate for someone your age." The white exceed commented. The water mage ignored her, keeping her head staring at the wooden table with a sullen aura around her.

"A-and they probably want to have time alone. It would be rude to interrupt them." Wendy said in her usual timid voice.

"Aye! Remember when Lisanna came back from Edolas? Mira and Elfman made sure she was with them for the whole day and the day after that. They canceled everything else just to spend time with her." Happy commented.

"Besides Gray said that his father had a way to teach him quickly about Ice Devil Slayer Magic. They'll be back in a few hours." Lucy said as she adjusted Natsu's scarf around her neck. Happy sat next to her, munching happily on a fish.

"What!? Juvia had not heard any of that!" Juvia exclaimed as her head snapped back up from the table. "How did you know that love rival!? Are you conspiring behind Juvia to get Gray-sama for yourself!? Love Rival!"

"Oh good grief." Lucy muttered as she promptly ignored the rage that Juvia was letting off. However what did catch the Celestial Mage's attention was the noise outside. Apparently she wasn't the only one as several other people in the guild heard it too.

"What on earth is going on out there?" The sand mage Max asked as he walked towards the door to check it out. But before he got even close the doors were blasted open, courtesy of an explosion from outside.

"What the hell?" Warren exclaimed as he caught Max.

Outside the town of Magnolia was in turmoil. Buildings were on fire as the citizens were running around trying to get to safety or put out the fires. Tartarus soldiers, Etherious Elites and Hybrids running amok over the entire town as well as fighting a few Fairy Tail mages that were already outside when the attack happened. Still it was clear as day that Tartarus had the edge due to their numbers.

"What is this!?" Wakaba exclaimed as he looked at the burning buildings.

"Are they demons?" Lucy wondered before the answer hit her. "Tartarus!"

"They're attacking the whole town!" Carla cried. "And right when most of our members are away!"

"Everyone there is no time to get into shock!" Makarov yelled out to all of them. "Get out there and push them back while getting the citizens to safety! Now go!" The Guild Master of Fairy Tail ordered. And with that everyone head off to protect Magnolia.

"Cana! I want you and some of the others to remain here and protect the guild. Try and get in contact with the groups out there. Tell them to hurry back here as possible, that includes Gray and his father." Makarov said to the Card Mage and the Barmaid assistant.

"Got it Master." Cana said as she went back to the Communication Lacrima.

Elsewhere in Magnolia, several Fairy Tail mages were thrown back by an invisible force. The cause was a demon standing in the center of a destroyed house. She was of average height with pale green skin and a very well fined hourglass figure and large breasts. Her hair was red and smooth, reaching her mid back. They were completely pushed back and thus revealing her face clearly as well as her dark green eyes and a pair of antenna on her forehead. She wore a metallic-purple colored, long sleeve leather jacket that had red lines around the elbow parts. Under that was a sleeveless black leotard suit that revealed her midriff. The she-demon also wore tight fitting grey leather jeans that went all the way down her legs and into black trench boots with metal bottoms. All in all her outfit gave off a biker vibe. On her sternum, right above her breast, was her guild symbol, a yellow version of it. She was Iron Maiden Niebla, one of the Demon Lords of Tartarus.

The demon was about to move on when a giant fist nearly crushed her. She managed to move out of the way in time, the fist creating a small crater in the ground where she once stood. Niebla looked up and saw that it was Makarov, the short Guild Master floating in the air before her. "A woman? I came here since you were causing the most damage but I have to admit that even if you are a demon, it'll be hard for me to fight you fully. Hitting women isn't one of my strong points." Makarov mused.

Niebla said nothing, instead she raised her left hand out and suddenly multiple large rubble went flying in the air towards Makarov. The Wizard Saint merely dodged them or smacked them to the side with his large hands. Then Makarov fired a ball of light magic towards Niebla, only for the female demon to deflect it with her hand, her stoic face never changing. She then countered by raising her left hand again and before Makarov could react he was pulled towards Niebla by an invisible force. _'What the!? Gravity!?'_ Makarov thought as he tried to break free from the gravitational pull but to no avail.

"If you fight my Law with half a resolve." Niebla said in a monotone voice as she delivered a punch to Makarov's face when he was close enough. The old mage could feel another invisible force increasing the power of her fist. "Then you'll die." She added as she sent Makarov crashing through several buildings.

"Ugh" Makarov groaned as he slowly got up, rubbing his nose a bit. "Guess she's got a point. And I can't let her destroy the town." He finished as he charged towards Niebla.

Elsewhere in the plaza Ezel was laughing maniacally as he fired waves after waves of cutting shockwaves that slice apart anything they hit. "Oh man I don't know if Silver is really here or not but slaughtering all these fuckers is one hell of a stress reliever." Ezel exclaimed as he fired more slashes.

Suddenly a blast of energy struck him in the back, causing Ezel to cry out in shock. But it was quickly followed by more blasts as a barrage of magical bullets courtesy of Bisca and Alzack Connell; the Gun Mages of Fairy Tail struck him. The two had seen the explosions from their home and after making sure their daughter, Asuka, was safe, the couple headed out to confront the closes enemy, in this case Ezel. By the time they finished a large cloud of dust covered the plaza where Ezel had stood.

"Think that finished him off?" Alzack asked his wife as he reloaded his gun.

His question was answered when a large energy blade soared at him and Bisca. The two mages just barely managed to get out of the way as it sliced a building behind them in half. Coming out of the dust was a bruised Ezel who had a vicious grin on his face.

"Does that answer your question dear?" Bisca asked as she summoned one of her guns again.

"Those were some pretty nasty wounds you guys gave me." Ezel commented as he his tentacles began to move in excitement. "I hope you two make things more interesting for me then those other mages I ran into." He said with a sadistic smile before firing waves of slashes towards the couple. Bisca and Alzack jumped to the opposite sides to dodge the barrage.

Recovering Alzack fired a barrage of magical bullets at Ezel. The demon however merely deflected them with his arms. Trying a different tactic Azlack pointed only one of his guns and said, "Sunlight Shot!" And fired a bullet that released a bright light. The sudden flash of light blinded Ezel temporarily, forcing the demon to use his arms to shield his eyes. When he could finally see he was greeted with Bisca standing a few feet in front of him, her magic pumped-up shotgun in her arms. "Shit!" Ezel cursed.

"Wide Shot!" Bisca cried as she fired the gun. It released a single bullet that suddenly split into several dozen magical shards. All of them struck Ezel at once, creating a huge explosion that consumed Ezel. Bisca then moved back towards Azlack as she kept an eye on the smoke for any signs of Ezel.

Just as they thought they had won, the Connells heard the sound of laughter coming from the smoke. Ezel's silhouette could now be seen from the smoke. As he took another pose the demon yelled, "Now that's what I call teamwork. Here, you two can die together! Mikazuki!" And he waved his arms around rapidly, firing moon shaped shockwaves that soon caused a large explosion around the area.

Standing on a cliff that overlooked the town, Keith watched as the carnage raged everywhere in Magnolia. "Today brings forth destruction and the dead will rise to heed the bidding of the demons." Keith murmured as he used his curse, Necromancy, to bring the recently deceased back to life to do his bidding and aid Tartarus' forces.

"Do not forget why we were sent here Keith." A voice from behind said. "Have you found the traitor?"

The skeleton-like demon turned around to face the newcomer, whom was walking towards him. Said person was slightly taller then Keith and wore a white, black-trimmed armor that appeared to be a mix of a Japanese's Samurai and a European's Knight with a long black cape wrapped around his neck collar. Underneath the armor was dark grey colored skin and black clothing. Over his hands were black gloves, while his feet were covered by dark, grey boots that went past his ankles. The person wore a Pickelhaube that covered the top of his head and the back too (A/N: Its an old German Helmet usually worn by military commanders). A bundle of yellow tassel was sticking out from the top of the helmet and going down the back. He also wore a mask plate that covered the lower part of his face. On the sides of the helmet were black colored Tartarus guild symbols. Of his eyes, all that could be seen were glowing yellow dots.

"White Night Homoru" Keith said as he looked at his fellow Demon Lord. "I have used my Necromancy to scan the entire area. Silver was here but has left some time ago. And Askari is blocking any communications from entering or leaving the town. From what he's learned, Silver has left with his son to train him in Devil Slayer Magic."

"Then us being here is pointless." Homoru said as he crossed his arm while looking down at the town.

"Not entirely. Silver will show; this is his son's guild after all." Keith replied. "Plus we have a chance to wipe out a possible threat while their forces are spread."

Homoru looked at the skeleton Etherious before turning his view back to Magnolia. Suddenly the armored demon began to float off the ground. As he did he said, "Then in that case I will deal with the source."

**(House of Former Council Member Belno)**

"God damn thing! Why won't it work!?" Gajeel roared as he kept playing with the communication lacrima.

"I don't think hitting will fix it Gajeel." Pantherlily said to his partner.

"Well do you have any ideas?" Gajeel retorted angrily.

"Short tempered-as ever huh Gajeel?" Belno asked as she walked out from the kitchen with a tray of drinks.

Gajeel, Pantherlily and Team Shadow Gear had managed to arrive to Belno's house, situated on the outskirts of a village, pretty quickly since Gajeel knew the address already. The others found out that Gajeel and Belno knew each other already and while he didn't show it, Gajeel deeply cared for the elder woman in his own way. It was shown with his urgency to get to her place quickly.

Belno was quite shocked to see Gajeel and several Fairy Tail mages at her door. But she was more shocked that Tartarus was after her and other former council members. Granted Belno was a bit skeptical at first but upon Gajeel mentioning FACE, she knew that they were telling the truth. At the moment all of them were staying put in case Tartarus showed up. That and they couldn't contact the guild for some reason, the mages were wary of moving just yet.

"So you knew Gajeel before he joined Fairy Tail?" Levy asked as she politely took a cup of tea.

"I first met Gajeel when he was still in Phantom Lord. Back then he caused a lot of trouble, even more then he does in your guild." Belno said as she sat down. "The last time I saw him was seven years ago, a few days before Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail had their guild war. He reminded me a lot about my son who passed away so I tried to look out for him. When I heard he joined Fairy Tail I was quite surprised but it seems to have done some good for him."

"I wouldn't say that…" Droy muttered quietly with Jet silently agreeing. Though they have grown use to the Iron Dragon Slayer, the two male Shadow Gear members didn't complete forgive Gajeel for what he did to them, despite Levy's claims he had changed.

"By the way you're name is Levy correct?" Belno asked the petite blue haired girl.

"You've heard of me?" Levy asked, genuinely surprised. Not a lot of people outside of Fairy Tail or other close contacts have really heard of her, or at least not by name.

"There's a lot of talk about Fairy Tail ever since the Grand Magic Games in the Sorcery Weekly. Some of it talks about how you and Gajeel are a couple." Belno commented.

"A-a-a couple?" Levy shrieked. Her entire face became as red as Erza's hair. Jet and Droy went pale and their jaws dropped, hitting the floor, the thought of their beloved Levy being with Gajeel. Gajeel and Pantherlily didn't seem to hear it but knowing Gajeel's enhanced hearing, he most likely did but probably just ignored it.

"I don't really believe what that magazine says but I was interested of how they mentioned you two with each other at Ryuzetsu Park, like you were on a date. Honestly I was just curious since Gajeel could use someone to keep that temper of his in check." Belno commented, amusement in her voice, watching Levy become embarrassed.

Levy was about to respond when Gajeel shouted, "Everyone, get down!" He yelled as he tackled the group to the ground.

Soon a large explosion engulfed the house. It was so large that it reached the sky before finally dying down. The entire top of the house was gone along with most of the lower level where the Fairy Tail Mages were with Belno. Standing on top of the destroyed roof was Jackal, cackling. "Well, that was pretty easy." The demon said until he saw the figures of people in the smoke. "Huh?"

"I barely felt that!" Gajeel said. He was coated in his Iron Dragon's Scales and stood in front of Belno and Pantherlily, both of whom were on the floor while Gajeel protected them from the majority of the blast. Across from him was Levy whom had used her magic to create 'GUARD' to protect her and her teammates too.

"Fairy Tail huh?" Jackal murmured when he saw the guild emblem on Gajeel's shoulder. "I'm impressed that you managed to survive one of my bombs. But don't get ahead of yourself."

"We'll see about that! Let's go Lily!" Gajeel yelled as he charged forward.

"Right!" The black Exceed exclaimed before he switched into his battle form, his sword in hand.

"Gajeel!" Levy exclaimed as she prepared to go help him.

"You and the two losers protect granny! Lily and I got this bastard!" Gajeel ordered as he dodged several of Jackal's explosions.

"Whose he calling losers?!" Droy shouted.

"Never mind that! Just help get Belno-roshi out of here!" Levy ordered as she helped said woman up to her feet. The four made their way out of the destroyed house while Gajeel and Pantherlily dealt with the demon.

"You think I'm going to let you get away!?" Jackal exclaimed as he prepared another explosion only to be intercepted by a sword strike from Pantherlily. But he managed to jump over the slash before landing a kick to the Exceed's face. The force caused Pantherlily to fly into the wall while losing a grip on his sword. "Is that it fur ball?" Jackal asked mockingly.

"Iron Dragon's Club!" Gajeel roared and soon an iron club shot out of the Dragon Slayer's right arm and struck Jackal in the back. The Demon was sent flying backwards but managed to recover and land on a couch.

"That was a pretty bad-" Jackal didn't get a chance to finish when Lily delivered a punch right into Jackal's right cheek. "Bugh!" Jackal yelled as skidded across the ground.

"Now Gajeel!" Pantherlily yelled.

"I'm on it!" Gajeel replied as he appeared in the air above Jackal. "Iron Dragon's Roar!" He yelled before releasing a blast of iron shards right towards the demon. However Jackal managed to jump out of the way before raising his hand.

"Explode!" Jackal exclaimed as he engulfed Gajeel in another explosion. However Gajeel managed to dodge it and dived towards Jackal. "A frontal assault against me isn't smart! It's just plain stupid!" Jackal said before he prepared to release another explosion. But before he could do that he was again hit in the back, this time from a dropkick courtesy of Pantherlily. This led Jackal wide open to a barrage of punches from Gajeel who finished it up with a powerful uppercut, sending Jackal flying backwards.

Gajeel stood in his fighting stance as he stared at the down Jackal. "I think we got the bastard." Gajeel commented to Pantberlily, who landed beside him with his sword.

"We should probably let Levy and the others know. And bring him back to the guild for interrogation." Pantherlily suggested.

"That is if you have a guild to return too." Jackal said as he calmly got up. He was covered in several bruises but acted like nothing happened.

"What the fuck?" Gajeel asked as he looked at the demon. "It's like he didn't just take an ass-whooping a moment ago."

"He's pretty durable that's for sure." Pantherlily added.

"By the way." Jackal began, catching their attention. "That wasn't really a smart move, hitting me all the time. Well, you're about to find out why right now though." The demon commented.

"What…?" Was all Gajeel could say before he noticed glowing marks on his body. Pantherlily had the same marks on his body too and before either could react the marks exploded, engulfing their bodies in violent explosions. The two collapsed to the ground in defeated slumps.

"See?" Jackal asked, not really expecting an answer. With a final chuckle the Demon Lord dashed off after the former council member. "Well I'm off! Got places to go and councilors to kill!" He said as he laughed, leaving behind two unconscious Fairy Tail Mages.

Elsewhere Team Shadow Gear was leading Belno through an old path in the woods at the outskirts of the small village. It was in order to avoid getting any bystanders involved. "Do you think Gajeel will be alright?" Jet asked as he and Droy followed behind Belno and Levy.

"Yeah that demon looked pretty tough…and crazy." Droy added.

"This is Gajeel we're talking about. He'll be fine." Levy said as she kept running. "And he has Lily with him. They won't lose."

"Oh I wouldn't be so sure about that." A voice said.

Suddenly explosions appeared all around the group, nearly consuming them if not for Levy quickly shouting, "Solid Script: Guard!" Forming a large dome, protecting the four from the explosions. As the smoke died down team Shadow Gear and Belno saw Jackal standing on top of a tree branch looking over them. "Found you." Jackal said with a smirk.

"No way!" Jet exclaimed in shock.

"What happened to Gajeel and Lily?!" Levy demanded as she stood in front of Belno defensively.

"The iron head and muscle cat? Last time I saw those two were out of commission…permanently maybe." Jackal said sneered. "Now then, surrender the old hag now and I promise I won't give you a horrible death. I'm a considerate guy after all."

"Bastard! Don't look down at us!" Jet yelled back as he got in front of Levy.

"Yeah, now we'll show you the strength of Team Shadow Gear!" Droy added as he pulled out some seeds from his Live Coal container. "Knuckle Plant!" Droy shouted as he threw the seeds on to the ground. Quickly large vines with fists popped out and went straight towards Jackal. However the demon merely waved his hand and the vines exploded. But through the smoke Jet suddenly appeared, using his High Speed Magic to get the jump on Jackal.

"Falcon Heavenward!" Jet yelled as he kicked Jackal right in the chest.

Jackal smirked. "Shouldn't have done that." Was all he said before Jet was consumed by an explosion and sent flying backwards towards Droy, burnt marks over his body.

"Jet!" Levy and Droy shouted as the latter caught the Speed Mage.

But Jackal wasn't done there. Bringing his arms behind him and gathering energy, Jackal yelled, "Exploding Spiral!" As he swiped his arms at Jet and Droy, engulfing the two in a large explosion in the form of a spiral.

"GUYS!" Levy cried in horror as her two teammates fell to the ground, both unconscious and were covered in bruises and burns.

"I guess you're next huh pipsqueak?" Jackal asked as he casually made his way towards Levy when he was suddenly flung back by an invisible force. The force wasn't strong but it caught Jackal by surprise and he crashed into a tree. Levy turned around to see Belno with her hand raised.

"Belno-roshi!" Levy said in surprise when she realized that the older woman was using telekinesis.

"Take your friends and get out of here dear! I'll hold him off for as long as I can." Belno ordered as she moved past a shocked Levy.

"What? We can't abandon you!" Levy protested.

"He's after me not you! If he kills me then he won't go after you kids." Belno explained before wincing. Her old age and time from practicing had weakened her magic powers considerately. To prove that, Jackal easily freed himself from Belno's grip.

"Ha! Doesn't matter the order! I'll kill all of you damn humans!" Jackal declared maniacally before lunged towards Belno. He was about to grab her when suddenly his face with the feel of a iron fist.

"Back off bastard!" Gajeel roared as he sent Jackal skidding across the ground. The Iron Dragon Slayer was a bit bruised but was still holding strong. Following behind him was Lily who was equally bruised but still capable of fighting.

"Gajeel! Lily!" Said a relieved Levy as she saw that the two were okay.

Jackal grunted in annoyance when he saw that the Iron Dragon Slayer was still alive. "Got to admit, you're pretty tough to still move after feeling one of my bombs. But your memory doesn't seem to be working. Haven't you forgotten what happens when someone touches me?" Jackal asked mockingly.

Just as he said that Gajeel was consumed by another explosion. But when it cleared everyone minus Pantherlily, were shocked to see Gajeel still standing, covered in his iron scales. A little bit bruised but still fine. "What!? How?" Jackal roared.

"Gihihi" Gajeel snickered his signature laugh. "Compared to another pyromaniac I know, my iron scales are more then enough to deflect these lame explosions of yours." The Iron Dragon Slayer declared.

"You're scales!?" Jackal roared, not fully understanding what the mage meant.

'_Gajeel used his Iron Dragon's Scales to take the brunt of the explosion. That way he take less damage from it.'_ Levy thought in awe.

"Lily! Protect shrimp and granny!" Gajeel told his partner before he dashed off towards a still shock Jackal. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!" He roared as he landed a powerful punch into Jackal's stomach, sending the demon back again. Once more the curse marks began to glow on Gajeel's fist.

"Hahaha!" Jackal laughed as he got up. "There! Kaboom!" He yelled as the explosion consumed Gajeel again. But he's laughter was cut off when Gajeel appeared from the smoke, unharmed and his scales still holding, though slightly cracked.

"Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!" Gajeel yelled. That's when several iron spears were fired rapidly from Gajeel's hand, which had morphed into a large iron spearhead. The barrage struck Jackal head on, delivering multiple bruises to the demon's body as he crashed into a crater.

"D-damn it…Damn it!" Jackal cursed as he began getting his way out of the crater. Despite all the damage he took the demon surprisingly still move. As he finally got up Jackal was met with Gajeel standing a few feet away from him a grin on his face.

"When the ice stripper's old man said you guys were a threat, I almost believed him." Gajeel commented as he made his way towards Jackal. "But now I think you guys are a bunch of pussies. If this is all you 'Demon Lords' got then kicking your Master's ass will be easy." Gajeel mocked.

Those words seem to have been the last straw for Jackal. Suddenly his body began shaking violently before everyone's eyes. Slowly he began to morph, getting bigger and bigger. All the time he kept muttering. "Don't you, don't you…DON'T YOU DARE LOOK DOWN ON US DEMONS!" Jackal roared as his transformation was complete.

Standing before Belno and the shocked Fairy Tail Mages was a large demonic dog. Jackal's shirt was now torn due to the change of size and he had gained a scar over his left eye. "What the hell-" Was all Gajeel could say before the transformed Jackal delivered a powerful punch right into Gajeel's stomach. The contact created an explosion that sent the Iron Dragon Slayer flying.

"Gajeel!" Levy cried as Gajeel managed to recover and land on his feet.

"He can create explosions on contact now?!" Pantherlily exclaimed in shock.

"There is no way humans can ever overcome the power of demons!" Jackal yelled as he threw another punch at Gajeel. This time however the mage was able to dodge it. But the punch still caused an explosion to occur but Jackal paid it no mind as he kept going after Gajeel. "There is nothing that can defeat E.N.D! He is the firstborn of Zeref, the first Etherious! HE IS THE GOD OF DEMONS! E.N.D CANNOT BE DEFEATED BY INSECTS LIKE YOU AND NEITHER CAN WE!" Jackal roared again as he kept swinging wild punches at Gajeel.

"Iron Shadow Dragon Mode!" Gajeel yelled as shadows began to surround his body. His iron scales became more sleek and smooth, covering his body like a silver skin while his eyes turned pitch white and his black hair stood up. Jackal threw another punch at him but Gajeel merely disappeared into the shadows, avoiding the attack. "WHAT?!" Jackal roared as Gajeel seemingly disappeared.

"Iron Shadow Dragon's Club!" Gajeel cried as he came out of the shadows behind Jackal and delivered a powerful blow to the demon's head with an iron club covered in shadows. Jackal howled and swung around to hit Gajeel. But Gajeel quickly turned into a shadow again and dodged it, as well as the explosion afterwards.

Meanwhile the spectators were struggling to stand on their feet at the intense battle. "Damn it! We need to get out of here!" Pantherlily yelled as he tried to cover Levy, Belno and the down Jet and Droy.

"Lily! Get Jet, Droy and Belon-roshi out of there!" Levy ordered as she ran towards the fight.

"Wait Levy what are you doing?!" Pantherlily asked as he picked up the two unconscious mages.

"To support Gajeel! He can't keep fighting that guy for long!" Levy replied as she kept moving forward. "Gajeel!"

Gajeel had just dodged another one of Jackal's explosion when he heard Levy's voice. "Levy! What the fuck are you doing?!" He roared back.

"Solid Script: Iron!" Levy said as she used her magic to create a giant piece of iron and shot it towards Gajeel. "Finish him!" Levy yelled back.

Gajeel smirked, impressed with the little mage's courage and quick thinking. "Roger that!" Gajeel replied as he grabbed the iron and quickly began eating it.

"The only one who is going to be finished…IS YOU!" Jackal roared as he lunged towards Gajeel.

Having just finished eating the iron and deactivating his Iron Shadow Dragon Mode, Gajeel made a stance before clapping his hands over his head. "Dragon Slayer Secret Art! Karma Demon: Iron God Sword!" He cried as his hands morphed and turned into a giant iron sword that went pass the trees. Then with a single swing, Gajeel brought the gigantic weapon downwards on top of Jackal, crushing the demon and destroying a large part of the forest in front of him. What followed afterwards was a final explosion from Jackal that consumed Gajeel.

That attacked had done it. As the dust cleared it revealed an unconscious Jackal amongst the rubble and back into his original form. Gajeel was also tired, panting heavily as his hands returned to normal before plopping his butt on the ground. The rest of him followed as he fell backwards with his back hitting the ground.

"Gajeel!" Levy said as she rushed up to the down Dragon Slayer. Belno and Pantherlily were right behind her, the latter holding Jet and Droy in his arms. "Gajeel are you okay?" Levy asked.

"Gihihi…I feel like I got hit by one of Salamander's punches." Gajeel muttered as he opened one of his eyes, a smile on his face as he looked at the others.

Levy smiled at Gajeel's words along with Pantherlily while Belno shook her head. "Honestly you never change do you boy?" She asked exasperatedly as if scolding a child but there was a small smile on her lips.

Gajeel just did his signature laugh again. But the moment was ruined when a bright light began to glow from nearby. The source was none other then Jackal. The demon had woken up and managed to flip himself over so he was facing the ground. But he couldn't really move yet but he paid it no mind as the glow intensified and pillars of light shot out of the ground too.

"This is ridiculous…for me to lose to a human." Jackal muttered. Then a small smile formed on his lips. "Sorry Abaddon-san, Master, at the very least…I can take them all with me."

"What are you doing?!" Pantherlily demanded as he drew his sword, ready for an attack.

"The power he is releasing is enough to destroy the entire village!" Belno cried as she could feel the massive amount of energy the demon was releasing.

"Stop it!" Levy cried.

"Haha, you all lose. I am the bomb." Jackal explained. "Everything will explode even if I die." Jackal then began laughing manically. "Guess we'll see each other in hell!"

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Pantherlily roared as he turned back into his battle mode before grabbing Jackal and taking to the air.

"Lily!" Gajeel yelled as the Exceed took to the sky.

"Bastard!" Jackal cursed as he tried to free himself but Pantherlily held firm.

Once he was high enough Pantherlily reared his arms back. "Don't think we'll lose to a bunch of scum like you!" The black Exceed roared and threw Jackal higher into the air.

As his body began to glow brighter Jackal cried out one last time. "SHIT!" He yelled as he released a large explosion high in the sky. Fortunately Pantherlily was away from the explosion but the sudden change in wind pressure hit him hard as he was sent hurtling back towards the ground. The black Exceed managed to perform a crash landing while changing out of his battle form. The now smaller Pantherlily was quickly caught by Levy. "Well…that was a close." Lily muttered with a grin, but wincing soon afterwards.

"You two…" Levy muttered as she smiled softly at the both of them. Belno was helping Gajeel up just as Droy and Jet woke up.

"Ugh my head hurts…" Droy moaned.

"Damn it, where did that bastard go?" Jet muttered as he looked around for signs of Jackal. But to his surprise all he saw were a beaten up Gajeel and Pantherlily, a slightly bruised Levy and Belno and a devastated forest that looked like it came out of a warzone. "W-wait, what happened?" Jet asked confused.

"So _now_ you losers decide to wake up?" Gajeel sneered at the two males but neither heard him.

"We should head to the village. There's a hospital there where we can get these two checked out." Belno said as she handed Gajeel over to Jet and Droy.

"No…" Gajeel protested weakly. His body was hurting all over from that fight and was just barely staying awake. "Need to…get back…guild…in trouble…" He managed to say before he finally lost consciousness.

"What's he talking about?" Levy asked as she looked at Pantherlily.

"Back at the house, that demon, Jackal, said something." The Exceed said as he recalled the demon's words.

"_That is if you have a guild to return too." _Those were Jackal's words to Pantherlily and Gajeel from the house and to the Exceed only one thought came to mind.

"I think the guild might be in trouble." Pantherlily said to the shocked people.

**(Back with Erza and Mirajane)**

Abaddon's head snapped towards the direction where Gajeel's group was. Even though the location was very far, the leader of the Demon Lords could feel the disappearance of an Etherious's Curse Power. "That's where Jackal was. Was he defeated?" Abaddon wondered before turning his attention back towards his two opponents.

The area around him was even in worse shape then where Gajeel and Jackal fought. The ground was completely decimated, with trees uprooted and large boulders in pieces. Craters of various sizes could be seen a mile away. In front of him were Mirajane and Erza and both women looked worse for wear then they were before the battle started.

Mirajane was in her Satan Soul: Sitri form. However she was heavily bruised, purple disfigured marks covered her body along with multiple scratches, with a few bleeding. Several ribs were broken too and her vision was a bit blurry too. Beside her Erza didn't look much better. She was wearing her Flame Empress Armor but it had seen better days. The left boot and lower part of the greave had been torn off, revealing her foot and leg. Both wings on the back of the armor were destroyed, her right gauntlet was also gone, revealing her arm and hand while the bottom portion of the breastplate was gone, revealing her stomach. She also had her own share of injuries, including several nasty bruises plus a swollen cheek and blood going down her face from the forehead. Both were exhausted but manage to stand.

Abaddon however was the total opposite. He had no wounds on him and seemed completely fine, not the least bit winded despite fighting two S-class mages. In fact he looked rather bored and disappointed at how easy this fight was going.

"T-this guy is strong." Mira muttered as she glared at Abaddon. Never in her life had she faced off against someone that could take her on with just ease. Worse, he managed take her _and_ Erza on at the same time without breaking a sweat. "Erza…maybe we should retreat."

"N-no…" Erza muttered as she walked forward, raising her sword and got into a fighting position. "I will not retreat whatsoever. As a Fairy Tail Mage will neither run nor lose, not against people like you." She declared bravely, her glare towards Abaddon.

Mirajane just looked at Erza as if she had gone crazy. She knew that the redhead was a prideful woman but in this situation such a thing would get Erza killed. Abaddon seemed to share similar thoughts as he spoke. "Are you sure that's your warrior pride?" The demon asked calmly. "Or the act of a stubborn child."

And in a flash he reappeared right in front of Erza. The Requip mage had little time to react as Abaddon delivered a devastating blow to her chest, breaking a bone or two too. "Hado: Genkotsu" Abaddon said as he launched Erza backwards.

"Erza!" Mirajane cried before glaring at Abaddon. She tried to deliver a kick at the demon. But Abaddon managed to block it with his arm before countering with a punch into Mira's face. That sent the Take Over mage back several feet, but she managed to recover and flew to the air. Once she was high enough Mira began to gather magical energy around her until it began to form into a dark sphere. "Evil Explosion!" Mira yelled as she fired the sphere down at Abaddon, resulting in an explosion upon impact.

"Impressive…" A voice said from behind Mirajane. She had only a few seconds to turn around before a hand gripped the side of her head and launched her into the ground. Back in her previous position was an unharmed Abaddon, standing in the air with energy pulsing from his feet. "But against my Hado Curse nothing you do will come to avail."

Lying in a crater that she made, Mirajane struggled to get up, but was suddenly and violently pinned down by Abaddon, landing on top of her. Mira could only let out a gasp before a hand gripped her neck. "My curse raises my physical capabilities to supernatural levels with demonic energy and is empowered by my emotions, which I have learned to master for the past 400 years. In other words you have no chance of defeating me." Abaddon explained as he tightened his grip around Mirajane's throat.

"Get off of her!" Erza roared. She had already changed to her Purgatory Armor and lunged at Abaddon with her large spiked mace ready to strike. However just as she brought her mace down, Abaddon moved faster and with his spare hand grabbed the weapon easily. "What?" Erza said in surprise. No one had ever been able to stop her mace before, let alone with their bare hands.

"Hado: Mashu: Konagona!" Abaddon said as he squeezed his hand on the mace before eventually breaking it apart followed by a small shockwave. Erza was forced backwards by the shockwave.

However Abaddon was focused on Erza that he hadn't been looking at Mirajane. Said person was able to free her hands and place them on Abaddon's chest. The demon had just enough time to notice when Mira said her attack. "Evil Spark!" And the S-class mage released a powerful volt of electricity right at Abaddon's chest through his entire body. But instead of letting go of Mira, Abaddon shrugged off the attack easily and grabbed Mira's face.

"It appears you two fairies need more demonstrations until you realized how outclassed you are." Abaddon said as he easily threw Mirajane at Erza, the redhead still in her Purgatory Armor. The Titania managed to catch Mira, but that just gave Abaddon and opening to attack both of them.

"Hado: Teppo Soin!" Abaddon said as he extended his arms out wide before launching at them with incredible speed. He caught each girl with an arm, hitting them hard in the stomach, causing them to cough out blood. The two girls had little time to counter before Abaddon launched them forward. Erza and Mirajane both crashed into a large piece of rubble that was once the Ex-Chairman's house. The impact cause Mirajane to revert back to her normal form as she next fell to her hands and knees. She was heavily bruised and out of breath, her yellow kimono covered in dirt with a few holes on it. The hit from before really messed up her body inside as she could feel several bones were broken. Erza was also slightly winded from the obviously one-sided fight; her stomach was heavily bruised from the last attack, but she refused to back down as she changed back to her Heart Krutz armor.

"Why don't you just give up?" Abaddon asked as he walked up to them. "It's quite obvious you cannot win. I rather not inflict anymore damage then necessary and frankly it's depressing to fight children like yourselves…especially you Erza Scarlet."

"Shut up!" Erza roared as she clutched her stomach with her left hand while summoning a sword. But she was lifted upwards by Abaddon, who suddenly appeared before her. He held her by the throat with his right hand and held her off the ground.

"Ever since our Master returned seven years ago, we've been watching your guild, which has caused unknown pain to our Master." Abaddon said calmly as he held Erza by the throat. He ignored Mirajane's presence beside him, since she could barely move with her injuries. "And from what I learned of you Erza Scarlet…you're nothing more then a childish bully, not a warrior." The demon said.

"W-what?" Erza asked as she fought to free herself from Abaddon's grip but to no avail.

"You act like an adult and a warrior but really you're nothing but a little child who uses force on others. Even on your so called 'friends'." Abaddon stated. "You become quickly impatient when people don't speak quick enough, you become angry and use physical force on anyone, even your guild mates, when they don't do something you say. You even struck me out right away merely because I wasted your favorite sweet." He said as his left hand took the sword from Erza's. "You have strength and power worthy for an S-class mage, you lack maturity and patience, making you nothing more then a bully whose own comrades ignore and wish to avoid. And you can't tell me that you've never noticed how they acted around you?"

Erza paused from her struggling as she took in Abaddon's words. As much as she wanted to deny it, most of what he said made sense. She always resorted to violence whenever she was mad or didn't get what she wanted. Even her closes people, like Lucy, Gray and Natsu, tended to be a bit weary of being near her. And the other people in the guild seemed a bit scared of her even though they were friends. Could it really be true? Was she nothing more then a childish bully who used force? Even on her friends, her family?

"No you're wrong!" Mirajane cried weakly from where she laid. "Erza is our comrade!"

"She may be your comrade but that doesn't change the fact that she is nothing more then a child undeserving of her reputation." Abaddon retorted. "Plus saying that doesn't mean you're denying my claim. Though you being her former rival means you have a better idea of her."

Mira's eyes widened in horrifying realization that Abaddon had used her protest against her, but this went unnoticed by the Etherious as he looked back at Erza. "While I admit that I do not know your personal history, I can say this. Erza Scarlet: the people who gave their lives for you…died in vain. For they died for a child who can never grow up. And while killing you would be a waste of time."

STAB! SQUEALSH!

Erza's world suddenly came to a halt as she felt something sharp and metal pierce her body, with a stream of blood coming out of mouth. Looking down she saw that Abaddon had rammed her sword through her gut during his monologue. Her blood began to seep out of the wound onto the sword's blade and eventually drip towards the ground. Her eyes wide, Erza looked back at Abaddon's face, his yellow eyes still looking at her.

"Killing you would be doing the world a favor." Abaddon finished as he let go of the sword's handle.

Mirajane's eyes were as wide as saucers as she watched the scene unfold. Her voice finally came back when Abaddon tossed Erza's body like a rag doll, sword still impaled as she hit the ground. "NOOOOO! ERZA!"

However the redhead did not respond to Mira's loud cries, even as barmaid kept screaming her name. Mirajane was soon silenced by a well place punch to the head courtesy of Abaddon. "You however, I have orders to bring you back, alive if possible." Abaddon said to the unconscious Take Over mage.

Erza, still conscious, could only watch silently as Abaddon slung Mira's still form over his shoulder. "M-Mira…" Erza said, but her voice was so low that Abaddon made no indication that he heard her. The demon began to walk away with the white hair mage while Erza's world finally went dark.

**(Magnolia; Fairy Tail Guild)**

"We got more wounded!" Someone shouted.

"Move them over to the far right!" Macao said back. "Take them to the second floor if there is no room!"

The battle in Magnolia had dragged on, creating heavy casualties for both Fairy Tail and the citizens. The mages had set out towards where the heaviest damage was happening in order to deal with the more dangerous invaders. Others focused on protecting important places like the hospital and spreading all over town to evacuate the civilians. The mages even began using their guild building to house civilians and the wounded too. But with so many of their people out trying to locate and protect the former council members or on missions, Fairy Tail had little firepower to fight back and protect the Magnolia citizens.

At the bar Cana and Warren were hard at work with a different subject. Cana was trying to contact the Fairy Tail mages out on missions with a communication lacrima and her magical cards. Warren was trying to use his telepathy to contact the others too while sometimes shifting to act as a messenger to the ones in the town. Kinana was also with them, ready to assist them if they needed any.

"Are you getting anything yet Warren?" The buxom Card mage asked.

"Nothing" Warren said grimly. "Either the others are too far out for me to reach them or something is blocking my telepathy. Fortunately I can still reach those in the town."

"Damn" Cana cursed. She too was having little luck with calling anyone. "I can't believe our luck. Tartarus attacks us when most of our people are out of town. Was this deliberate or just a stroke of bad luck on our side?" Cana muttered to herself.

"But we have the Master here with us. With him we can push these demons back, or hold them off until the others get back." Kinana said, trying to lighten the mood.

Cana looked like she was going to respond, but was cut off when the guild began to shake. This caused everyone to stop what they were doing as they looked around nervously. The shaking soon stopped, but before they could let out a breath of relief, the wall where the request board was exploded, sending several mages nearby flying backwards.

Cana, Kinana and Warren shielded their faces from the smoke that came after. "What the hell-" Was all Warren could say before several yellow laser beams appeared, blowing him away from the girls. They struck everywhere, causing large explosions every time they hit. People screamed in panic and terror as they tried to get to some kind of cover. The remaining mages tried to defend themselves, the wounded and the citizens with their magic but the beams were very strong.

After a few minutes of constant beams and explosions did it die down. The entire guildhall was now up in smokes and flames. Voices from the occupants could be heard through smoke as they tried to get out of the burning building. Near where the bar used to be a slightly bruised Kianna slowly got up from the floor, painting heavily after the whole ordeal. "What in Mavis's name was that?" The buxom purple haired assistant barmaid wondered as she looked around.

A groan caught her attention. Spinning around Kinana spotted Cana through the smoke and flames. The brown hair girl was also equally banged up and her right leg seemed broken. Surprisingly her bikini was still in tact but that was the least of anyone's concern.

"Cana!" Kinana yelled out as she rushed towards the down Card mage. But she stopped when a grey boot appeared beside Cana. Both girls looked to see that it was Homoru, the demon standing above Cana menacingly. From the tips of his left fingers smoke came out, along with wisps of smoke coming from his yellow eyes too.

"Tartarus…" Cana groaned as she tried to reach for her magic cards. Homoru swiftly stopped that as he roughly grabbed her left wrist. This caused Cana's body to jolt upwards, making her release a gasp of pain. Her body was pulled up more until she was on her knees while the demon still had a grip on her wrist.

"Defiant until the end?" Homoru asked mockingly. His eyes began to glow brightly as he stared down at Cana's form. "It is time you humans learn your place. All that awaits you is death when you challenge the might of the demons." He commented as his eyes became bright and brighter.

Kinana could feel the power coming from Homoru's eyes. The demon planned to finish off Cana once and for all. "Stop it!" Kinana cried desperately, trying to find a way to save Cana. But she knew there was little she, someone who wasn't even a mage, could do in this situation. All the purple hair girl could do was watch in horror as Homoru prepared to kill the Card mage.

But just at the last second, as if the heavens themselves were looking down upon them, something unexpected happened. A brown and orange blur appeared out of nowhere and struck Homoru, followed by a brief explosion and small shockwave. The result was Homoru's right arm being split in half and his grip on Cana too. Said girl was grabbed the blur and taken near Kianna.

Homoru seemed recoiled, though it was more from surprise rather then pain of having his arm torn off. As the glow in his eyes died down, the demon took a moment to look at his attacker. "Who are you?" Homoru asked as he gripped what was left of his right arm.

The person said nothing at first, merely laid Cana gently on the ground. Said girl seemed a bit winded over what transpired the last few seconds. Kinana quickly rushed over to her while the third person stood up, showing that he was wearing a long brown tattered cape, tan skin and had orange hair combed back. "I am a lot of things." The man said calmly as he slowly began to turn around. "I'm a ladies man, a mage, a traveler, a Guild Ace, and I was recently a Guild Master." The now revealed Gildarts Clive paused as he glared at Homoru. There was nothing but pure rage in the man's eyes while his magical power spiked, covering him in a white aura. "But right now, I am a father."

**(The Cube; The Chambers of E.N.D)**

The Guild Master of Tartarus sat casually on his throne. His chamber was dark, the only exceptions being the moonlight creeping in from the window and the several screens hanging from the ceiling before him. E.N.D watched with mild interest of the actions that his guild was causing all over Fiore and would shift the image back to Magnolia, watching the battle in the town from various angles.

"Lord E.N.D, Abaddon has returned with a prisoner. It is the Take Over mage that can absorb demons." A voice said somewhere in the darkness.

E.N.D nodded, not taking his eyes off the screen. He was about to look at another screen when something on the center screen caught his attention. Whatever it was made E.N.D's eyes widened in what looked to be shocked, denial and…hope. "Pause" E.N.D ordered quickly and the image stopped automatically. "Zoom" He said next. By now the demon was on his feet, leaning closely towards the screen. His eyes focused completely on the image, trying to see if he was being deceived or not.

The Etherious watched as the screen zoomed in on the image that E.N.D desired. Said image was somewhere in Magnolia. It showed Lucy moving through the town, instructing the citizens to get to safety. As E.N.D continued to stare at Lucy's form, his mouth parted slightly. A single word escaped his lips. "Leandra…"

**And there we go! Battles are now raging everywhere between Fairies and Demons. And is Erza still alive? Well I'm the writer so only I know that. And for those of you wanting to see more of Lucy and her part in all this, that will be next chapter! Make sure to review!**

**Translation:**

Hado: Genkotsu (Wave Motion: Fist Bone)

Hado: Mashu: Konagona (Wave Motion: Demon Hand: Shatter)

Hado: Teppo Soin (Wave Motion: Iron Cannon Sweep)


	5. Fairies and Demons Clash Part 2

**Chapter 5! Glad you are all enjoying this story! Anyway I'm also going to be introducing other Etherious that are not part of the Demon Lords but are still equal in strength of them too. But besides that on with the story! Be sure to review!**

**(Fairy Tail Guild Hall)**

Gildarts Clive hadn't really been planning on coming back to the guild so soon. After all he still had a job to complete. But some sixth sense stirred up inside of him, like something big was going to happen and he needed to get back to Magnolia. But when he arrived he saw the town in flames and from what he could tell, demons, or to be precise members of Tartarus, were attacking Magnolia. So moving with great speed of an S-class mages, Gildarts made his way towards the guild, bashing through demons and helping civilians whenever he could. When he finally did make it to the guild he saw it was set a flames and people were trying to get out and help the wounded. But what caught Gildart's attention was that a powerful demon was holding his daughter by the wrist and was preparing to kill her, and that is where we find ourselves now.

"A father…?" Homoru in the present asked as he picked up his severed arm. Without even blinking the demon reattached it back to his body, much to the shock of the Fairy Tail Mages. "Such foolishness." He commented while flexing his fingers to make sure the nerves were connected.

Gildarts fixed the demon a glare. "Kinana, get yourself and Cana out of here." Gildarts said to the assistant barmaid girl. The girl looked like she wanted to argue but the reality hit her that she couldn't be of any help at all, what with having no magic whatsoever. So with a silent nod Kinana draped Cana's left arm over her shoulder before the buxom purple hair girl escaped the burning guild.

With the girls now safely away Gildarts could concentrate fully on Homoru. Not wasting anytime the Crash Mage took off at incredible speed towards the Etherious. Said demon raised his right pointer finger towards Gildarts. "Dark Light Curse. Dark Beam!" Homoru yelled as he fired a dark yellowish beam towards Gildarts. The Crash Mage dodged the beam and ignored the explosion caused by it. Homoru fired more of them but Gildarts dodged every single one, getting closer to the demon.

"Dark Flare!" Homoru shouted as he fired a larger beam from the palm of his right hand. But Gildarts raised his right hand and deflected the beam with his Crash magic. "What?" Homoru wondered out loud just as Gildarts reached him. The S-class mage starting throwing punches at the demon, who avoided the punches. Just as Homoru was about to retaliate, Gildart grabbed his right shoulder with his left prosthetic hand.

"Guwah!" Homoru grunted as Gildarts landed a strong punch into Homoru's stomach with his right fist. The Etherious managed to kick the mage back but Gildarts just rushed back in, left hand thrust forward to land another punch. But Homoru was quicker, wrapping his right arm around Gildart's extended left arm, holding it in place.

"Orange hair and a prosthetic left arm…" Homoru commented as he tightened his hold on Gildart's arm. The Crash Mage tried to free himself but to no avail, the demon had a strong grip. "I see, you're Gildarts Clive…the human whom encountered Acnologia and live to tell the tale." The demon said before his eyes glowed and with a quick mutter, "Dark Vision" Homoru shot beams from his eyes that tore Gildart's prosthetic arm in half. Despite it being a fake limb, the sudden destruction of it and the jolt to the nerves caused Gildarts to scream in pain. The man was now on his knees and crutching the remains of his left arm.

"However that is nothing compared to killing the beast. And only our Master can accomplish such a feat." Homoru said as he raised his right hand. Extending only his middle finger and pointer finger, Homoru pointed the appendages at Gildart's head. "Dark Arrow" The demon muttered as he fired a beam from the tips of his fingers.

An explosion soon consumed the entire guild building.

Makarov watched from his position in the air as his guild's building was destroyed. The Sixth Guild Master grinded his teeth and clenched his hands in rage, but not for the building itself but out of concern for the people inside of it. _'If any of my children were in there…'_ He thought grimly. However he had to push such thoughts out as he turned to look back down at Niebla. Said Demon Lord stared back up at him, an impassive look in her eyes.

The demon was a difficult opponent, even for a Ten Wizard Saint like himself. Her curse, Law as he recalled what Silver said, kept repelling any of Makarov's attacks with a strong gravitational force. She was also capable of pulling objects or people towards her to attack directly or merely send it flying back as a projectile. Makarov himself had been pulled in several times to be delivered a powerful punch or kick from the female demon. Clearly these demons were more then a match for some of their strongest mages, something that didn't bold well if they had to face E.N.D, the strongest Etherious.

"Grand Pull!" Niebla drone as she raised her left hand. Suddenly Makarov was being pulled in by a powerful force of gravity, straight towards the demon who was preparing another attack.

"Not this time!" Makarov cried as he managed to form a triangle with his hands. Suddenly a large beam of light shot out from the center right towards Niebla. However far from being concern Niebla merely countered it by saying, "Grand Push!" And a wave of gravity shot out from Niebla. It dispersed the beam of light and sent Makarov flying.

But the Guild Master recovered quickly and shot forward, enlarging his right arm and thrust forward towards Niebla. But the demon managed to evade the massive fist before releasing another gravity blast. This time however Makarov was prepapred as he erected a magical barrier to repel the attack. While it was slightly successful, the gravitational force caused the barrier to shatter from the impact.

"I had expected more from a human who holds the title of Wizard Saint." Niebla said as she walked calmly towards Makarov. Said mage was still floating in the air but was painting heavily. "But it seems like with all humans, you're powerless against demons." She added.

Makarov winced as he heard the comment. But he hardened himself, Fairy Tail had faced doom and destruction many times in the past and always come out on top. All that he could do now was have faith in his family.

**(With Laxus and the Raijinshu)**

"Incoming!" Freed yelled as he managed to summon a rune barrier to repel the attack. Said attack was a large mass of what looked like jet black ink. While the barrier managed to hold back the large mass, it still shattered and caused Freed to stagger backwards. Looking up Freed watched as Laxus clashed with the demon who called himself Petram. Around him his teammates were focus on protecting the civilians as well as the demon's target: Former councilmember Michello.

Laxus and company had arrived half an hour ago and just barely managed to save Michello and his granddaughter, Michella, from being killed by the demon. Soon the battle escalated and involved the entire town forcing the Fairy Tail mages to divide in order to protect the civilians and fight Petram. Surprisingly the demon was holding his own against Laxus, an S-class mage, and the Raijinshu, one of Fairy Tail's strongest teams. According to Silver, Petram's curse was called Mantra, and was involved in the manipulation of in a blackish ink aura that Petram could summon.

Back in the present, Laxus, body covered in lightning, charged towards Petram. However Petram just summoned a sphere of blackish ink around his arms and hands to deflect Laxus's lighting-empowered punches. "Mantra: Torrens!" Petram cried as he fired a blast of Mantra from his right hand. The result was a line of blackish ink hitting Laxus right in the chest, sending him back several feet.

Laxus managed to free himself of the assault. Aiming at Petram, he cried, "Lightning Dragon's Roar!" And fired a large roar of lightning straight towards the demon. But Petram merely summoned a wall of Mantra and blocked the attack. "Damn it!" Laxus cursed

"Ha Ha Ha! Is this all that an S-Class Mage can do! Is this all you humans are capable of?!" Petram asked mockingly as he clasped his hands together into a fist. "Nigrantem!" Petram cried and with his hands glowing black, he fired a barrage of small black dot-like projectiles. The projectiles went very fast and showed that they were strong as they pierced through stone buildings. Several were heading towards fleeing civilians, Michello and Laxus all at once.

"Damn it!" Laxus cursed as he covered himself in lightning again. Thanks to that he was able to easily dodge the barrage. "Freed!" Laxus shouted.

"I'm on it!" Freed shouted back as he got in front of Michello, Michella and the few remaining civilians. "Dark Ecriture: Reflect!" Freed cried as he swiped his sword, causing runes to appear in thin air. When the black bullets struck, they were instead reflected and flew back towards Petram, said demon mildly surprise by that. But he merely waved his hands and the bullets turned into black liquid and flew harmlessly past him. But Petram spun his hands again causing the ink splashes to swirl together into a large ball. Spotting Laxus Petram pointed his hand towards him. "Nigrum Bomb!" Petram said as he launched the black sphere towards the Lightning Mage.

Laxus spotted the oncoming projectile coming towards him. "Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!" He cried as he fired a large fist made of lightning. The two spells made contact and the result was the lighting dispersing as the black sphere turned into a large splash of black ink. The large mass of blackish ink blocked Laxus's view, that he didn't see Petram's smirk. Suddenly the wave of black ink splashes began to shift and swarm Laxus, surprising the man. "What the hell?!"

"Caveam Atamento" Petram said as the black liquid surrounded Laxus's figure and trapped him within a solid black-colored figure of the lightning mage. "My Curse, Mantra, doesn't focus on thing such as vaporizing like lightning or burning like fire. Instead it impales, slashes and crushes anything in my path, changing the density from solid to liquid. That's why I can deflect things like your lightning magic and still control its shape whenever I want." Petram explained to a trapped Laxus. Petram smirked at his work "You know I was expecting more from the human who forced Tempesta to use his Magical Barrier Particles but it seems like you're nothing but a disappointment." He added.

"How dare you say that about Laxus!" Evergreen roared as she flew above Petram. She waved her fan and suddenly dust particles began to gather around Petram. The demon eyed them curiously before Evergreen shouted, "Fairy Bomb: Gremlin!" And soon the dust ignited and exploded, consuming Petram in a large explosion. But Petram revealed to be okay, surrounded by a barrier of black ink splashes, a bored look on his face.

"Is that all?" Petram asked the floating woman. But his attention shifted when a shadow fell over him. Looking up again Petram saw Bickslow's five dolls circling above him, with said man standing on a rooftop nearby. "Baryon Formation!" Bickslow yelled as the dolls released a powerful beam of energy towards Petram.

"Wow that was actually impressive." A voice said from behind Bickslow. The Seith Mage spun around only to receive a strong kick to the face from Petram. Bickslow was sent flying backwards, crashing into the ground below.

"Bickslow!" Freed shouted.

"How the hell did he get there so fast?!" Evergreen cried as she looked from Petram on the roof towards where he was originally. As the smoke cleared she was shocked to see a second Petram. "A clone!" Evergreen exclaimed.

"Correct" The real Petram replied as he snapped his finger. Suddenly the Petram clone turned back into black ink and shot upwards like water shooting out of a geyser. It went straight towards Evergreen who didn't even have time to dodge it, only yell out in pain as the mass of black ink substance collided with her and she soon joined Bickslow on the ground, unconscious.

"Bickslow! Evergreen!" Freed shouted as he saw his friends fall one by one. He turned his attention back to Petram who just had an innocent look on his face. Behind Freed were Michelo and Michela, inside a rune barrier with the former shaking in his boots.

"Now then why don't you just step aside and let me complete my mission? Since its obvious that you can't beat me." Petram said calmly as he walked forward. "I know that keeping that barrier up takes a toll on you. You don't have enough power to take me on, not like you did in the first place." Petram said with a chuckle.

"Never!" Freed said strongly. "As a mage of Fairy Tail I will not allow you to succeed with your plan!" He shouted bravely but he knew that the chances of defeating Petram were slim. The green-haired mage had already used much of his magic to protect the citizens as well as hold the barrier guarding the former councilor and his granddaughter. If he took the barrier down then maybe Freed's chances would increase but then that would leave the citizens in danger.

Petram sighed. "Well if you insist." He said before raising his hand towards Freed. Black ink splashes began to gather around his hand, forming into a swirl that was gradually glowing bigger. Freed prepared himself for the attack as he stood in between the demon and the ex-council member. However before Petram could perform his attack a noise caught his attention. "Huh?" Petram said before he was suddenly punched in the face by a lightning enhanced fist. Petram was stunned at first but managed to recover as he did a flip and regained his footing. Looking up the demon was surprised at who it was. "You!"

Standing before him, right hand raised, was Laxus. The Lightning Dragon Slayer was painting heavily as electricity sparked around his body. "How did you get free from my cage? You're skin should've been fused to that dense Mantra and suffocated you!" Petram exclaimed in shock. Then he noticed how the lightning covered Laxus like a second skin, that's when realization hit him. _'He covered himself with a layer of lightning in order to protect him from my spell.'_

"Heh, guess your Mantra or whatever isn't as tough as you think it is." Laxus said with a smirk. However that was just a cover up for how exhausted he was after breaking out of that bind.

Petram seemed annoyed by that comment and was getting ready to attack when suddenly a voice spoke in his head. _'Petram what is your status?'_

'_M-Master E.N.D!' _Petram replied back in his head. He must've had a surprised look on his face because Laxus raised an eyebrow at the demon's expression. _'M-my apologies Master, I was just about to execute the ex-councilmember.' _Petram reported.

'_There is no need Petram._' E.N.D replied, surprising the demon. _'Sayla has already killed the councilmember for the second seal…and required us an asset too. And we know whom the third seal is and are making preparations. For now all Tartarus forces are to withdraw and return to Cube.' _The Dark Guild Master ordered.

Petram just nodded in understanding. He knew not to question his Master's commands. He surprised Laxus when he turned around before Petram began to surround himself with Mantra. Soon splotches of black ink began to converge around his back before finally turning solid into the form of wings. "Oh where the hell are you off to?" Laxus asked.

"You're lucky" Petram said but didn't turn to face Laxus. "Apparently we've already unlocked the second seal. Now real hell will begin." Petram said, saying the last part menacingly. Then he took off, leaving behind two disturbed Fairy Tail mages, two more just regaining conscious, and a frightened ex-councilor and his granddaughter.

**(20 Minutes Earlier: Elfman and Lisanna)**

The two youngest members of the Strauss siblings had just arrived to the home of the ex-councilor Leiji. The duo had gone to protect the man from Tartarus assassins but sadly they had arrived to late. The scene now was Elfman holding the still body of Leiji in his arms, Lisanna looking over his shoulder. After checking the man's pulse, Elfman gave a grim shake of the head.

"It's no use, he isn't breathing." Elfman said to Lisanna.

"Oh my…" Lisanna muttered, horrified.

"Set up the transmission Lacrima. We need to report this to the guild." Elfman stated.

"You're right." Lisanna replied as she began opening up the bag hanging from her shoulder in order to get said device. While she was doing that Elfman looked back at the frozen form of Leiji.

"How as he even killed?" Elfman muttered to himself. From what he could tell there were no signs of a struggle or even wounds on Leiji's person. "There isn't a single scratch on him."

Just has Elfman finished his sentence, Leiji's eyes popped wide open. "The hell!" Elfman exclaimed, startling Lisanna. Leiji robotically sat up straight, an empty look in his eyes. "Leiji-roshi you're-"

Before Elfman could finish his sentence, Leiji pointed a finger towards Lisanna, or more precise her bag. In just a second the bag and the lacrima within shattered into pieces, causing Lisana to shriek.

"The transmission Lacrima!" Lisanna exclaimed as she looked at the remains.

"Hey Leiji-roshi! Why the hell did you that?!" Elfman demanded, only to see Leiji's form fall to the ground again, dead once more.

There was a moment of silence as Elfman and Lisanna stared the unmoving body, as if expecting it to move again. However after seeing the corpse perfectly still, the two relaxed. But that didn't mean that they were still a bit shaken up a bit from that little show.

"What the hell…?" Elfman pondered.

"Just what on earth happened just now?" Lisanna said.

"I guess you can't expect a Corpse Macro to function properly as a live one." A feminine voice from behind commented.

Startled, Elfman and Lisanna spun around and found themselves looking at Sayla. Said demon was calmly sitting on a chair in the library, reading a book. She had a bored look in her eyes, as if the book she was reading wasn't interesting.

"Who the hell are you? What did you do to Leiji-roshi?!" Elfman and Lisanna demanded at the same time.

"I showed him to the gates of hell." Sayla said calmly as she flipped a page.

"Gates of hell…" Elfman muttered before realization hit him. "Then you're from Tartarus!" The Take Over Mage exclaimed while Sayla calmly turned another page in the book.

"The stories human write are really boring." Sayla commented, completely ignoring Elfman's exclamation. She placed the book down and stood up. "I'll just spin my own tale. A story fit for a demon."

"Get ready Lisanna!" Elfman said as he got into a fighting stance.

"Right!" Lisanna responded. The siblings were both in fighting stances as the demon walked towards them casually. She had her eyes closed and her left arm wrapped around her waist. The Fairy Tail mages were now about to use their Take Over Magic…

…When Elfman's hand gripped Lisanna's neck and head due to the hand's size.

"What…?" Elfman whispered, completely stunned by this event.

"Elf-niichan?" Lisanna asked as she felt her brother's strong grip around her head.

That's when Elfman's hand began squeezing Lisanna. Said girl was now gasping in pain and lack of air. Elfman looked in horror at what he was doing. He tried to release his grip but realized that he had no control over himself.

"Elf…can't…breathe…" Lisanna muttered as she tried to free herself to no avail.

"N-no it isn't me!" Elfman shouted before realizing what was going on. "W-what the hell did you do?! Stop it!" Elfman yelled at Sayla.

The demon said nothing, just calmly stood there as if the scene playing before her was nothing of importance.

"Damn it!" Elfman cursed as he once again tried to free himself. "Lisanna! Lisanna, hang on!" Elfman was now at the point of tears in horror and desperation. "Please I beg of you, stop it!" Elfman yelled again at Sayla.

"In a demon's story, there is no such thing as mercy." Sayla finally said, her eyes opened a bit as she stared at the siblings. "Nor is there mercy for those whom harm my beloved E.N.D." Sayla said the last sentence with a hint of malice while keeping her calm façade.

'_Sayla'_ A voice from within the Etherious' head said. _'Did you kill your target?'_

"M-m-master E.N.D!" Sayla exclaimed, momentarily losing her focus on holding Elfman. Both he and Lisanna dropped to the ground; the former panting from relief while the latter was taking in short breaths of air. However neither could move as Sayla managed to regain their bodies back under her Macro. But the she-demon seemed more focus on her Master's voice. "Yes Master I have neutralized the target, I am currently ending the stories of two Fairies." Sayla said in a tone that was filled with admiration towards her Master.

"_There will be no need for that." _E.N.D said causing Sayla's eyes to widen for a moment. _'We've confirmed that your target was one of the two remaining keys. One of the seals on FACE has been released. Return to Cube and Sayla…well done."_

Those two words made Sayla feel like she had gone to heaven. The demon's entire face went beat red at the compliment as Sayla put her hands to her cheek. "M-Master…" She said while panting heavily. "Y-you honor me with those kind words." She said lovingly.

If it weren't for their current situation Elfman and Lisanna would've sweat dropped at how Sayla was acting before them, going from compose to love stricken. Said demon managed to regain her composure, returning to her neutral look as she stared down at the Strauss siblings. "It appears as though my Master is in a merciful mood today. Your story shall continue…for now." Sayla said darkly before leaving. Several minutes later Elfman and Lisanna finally regained control over their body, both of them panting heavily. They shared a worried look with one another, wondering what else could go wrong.

**(Back at Magnolia)**

Ezel looked around at the destruction his last spell caused, a satisfied cruel smile on his face. His attack did much damage to the surrounding area; many buildings were barely recognizable now, completely shredded by the numerous slashes. Surprisingly, Azlack and Bisca were still alive though injured the former's left leg buried underneath rubble while the latter had a large slash on her stomach that was bleeding.

"Well, this is a surprise. I have to give you credit for still breathing after taking my Mikazuki head on." Ezel said mockingly as he made his ways towards them.

"B-Bisca." Azlack said to his wife. "Get out of here…I'll hold him off."

Bisca looked at her husband in shock. "What?! No! I'm not leaving you!" She said hotly.

"Bisca, I can't move my leg. You can still escape. If he get's both of us then, who will be there for Asuka?" Azlack commented, trying to make Bisca see reason. But the green haired woman shook her head defiantly; refusing to leave the man she loved. With what little strength she could muster she intertwined her right hand with Azlack's left while her left hand gripped her gun.

"What the hell makes you think that I'm going to give you shits a chance to get away?" Ezel asked as he neared them. He raised his right arm, preparing to deliver the final blow. "Be appreciative that I'm letting you bugs die together!" Ezel exclaimed as he brought down his arm towards the couple. The two guns mages closed their eyes, waiting for the end. Their only regret was leaving Asuka, their pride and joy, alone. However the end never came. Instead the couple opened their eyes to the demon gasping.

Sticking out of Ezel's chest was what appeared to be a large curved blade. Behind the demon a shadowy figure could be seen with glowing red eyes. The four-armed demon had a look of shock, pain and anger. After several seconds of silence Ezel gripped the blade with all four hands and with tremendous strength managed to pull it out of him. With the blade out he swung his arms violently, trying to hit his attacker. Said person jumped backs a fair distance giving Ezel and the Connells a clear view of them.

The person was male. He had a robust build and was just a few inches taller then Ezel. He wore a black ankle-length double breasted trench coat, which was worn out at the bottom, and a hood sticking out from the inside of the collar and currently over his head. Over his face was a mask, which displayed a pair of carved slits over his eyes, glowing an eerie red. The man also black gloves and grey gauntlets could be seen other the sleeves. The legs were covered by black trousers and black boots with matching grey greaves. The coat was held by a black belt around the waist. Despite wearing a mask over his face, you could tell that the newcomer was gazing at Ezel with an expressionless look.

Azlack was about to comment on the newcomer when he noticed something. Ezel had a surprised, and if you looked closely, frightful, look on his face. "I-it can't be!" The four-armed demon exclaimed as he stared at the newcomer. "You should've died decades ago! How are you here…Strafe!" Ezel demanded.

The now identified Strafe did not reply. Instead he raised his right arm, with the limb beginning to shift into a black mass. After a few seconds it stopped and took on the form of a black arm with reddish lines, with an elongated double ended blade formed from the base of the right elbow, turning the arm into a giant razor-sharp cutting weapon. With that done Strafe charged forward, moving at an incredible speed despite his mass. He managed to catch Ezel off guard momentarily, the demon jumping back at the last second. He received a slash to the chest from Strafe's blade.

"Bastard!" Ezel cursed out loud as his tentacles gripped the remains of a rooftop. Crossing his arms across each other he yelled. "Onimaru!" And fired a wide X-shaped shockwave towards Strafe. But instead of worrying Strafe merely raised his own sword arm and brought it downward. The impact shattered the shockwave and left Grim unharmed. "What?!" Ezel shouted in shock as he witnessed this.

But Strafe didn't stop there. Next both his armored arms transformed and changed into black, bulky arms with only two large fingers and a thumb. Before anyone could react Strafe fired a barrage of tendrils from his hands right towards Ezel. The four-armed demon managed to deflect some of them but the rest managed to either wrap around his form or pierce his body. With a single tug Strafe brought Ezel down to ground level, causing dust to fly everywhere.

Azlack and Bisca, who were watching from afar, were wondering if it was over when suddenly debris began flying everywhere from where Ezel crashed. Strafe withdrew his tendrils as Ezel jumped into the air, this time in a different form. He wore some kind of demonic samurai armor, with an Oni mask now covering his face. However the biggest change were his four arms, which now resembled large black blades with light edges. Ezel was now laughing madly as he landed across from Grim.

"Now you're done for you shithead! No one has faced my Slash Attack Mode and live to tell the tale!" Ezel declared as he raised all four of his bladed arms. "Feel the my demonic swords at their finest!" Ezel shouted before firing a barrage of extremely larger energy slashes towards Strafe. They were cutting through anything in their path, leaving clean marks as they did so.

Still retaining his calm composure, Strafe merely took the attacks head on, not effected in the slightest by the impacts. However he soon morphed his arms again, this time having them take the form of blackish arms with three-fingered, one-thumbed talon-like appendages. Without wavering Strafe plunged his right hand into the ground. In a few seconds multiple large black spikes erupted out of the ground right underneath Ezel.

"GAAAAAHHHH!" Ezel roared in pain as the spikes impaled his body. The spikes destroyed two of his bladed arms while several of his tentacles were torn off too. Soon after the spikes retreated back into the ground as Strafe pulled his hands out, allowing a defeated Ezel to fall to the ground, back first. With the demon unmoving, Strafe, whose arms reverted back to normal, began to approach the down Demon Lord.

"Incredible…" Azlack murmured, whom finally freed his leg from the rubble and was being supported by his wife. The two watched as Strafe approached Ezel's fall form before kneeling down. The armored silent man had his back to them so the Gun Mages could not see what he was doing. "He defeated that demon so easily."

Suddenly the ground began to shake all over the town, nearly knocking the couple off their feet. "What the hell is happening now?!" Bisca shouted in distress as she tried to support herself and her husband. The only one whom didn't seem alarmed was Strafe, still busy with whatever he was doing.

Soon large tentacles popped out throughout the town, causing a large panic from the Fairy Tail Mages, townsfolk and even the demons too. However that changed when only demons remained as the ones screaming. For the tentacles were now attacking them while protecting the humans. Bisca and Azlack were so engrossed with the scene before them that they didn't notice Strafe missing, along with Ezel's body.

In another part of Magnolia, Makarov and Niebla had put a pause on their battle as they watched the giant tentacles send the forces of Tartarus running. "What in Mavis' name is going on here?" Makarov murmured. While it was clear that the tentacles weren't attacking the townsfolk or his guild members, the old Guild Master was more focus on who or what summoned them.

Niebla was also having similar thoughts but more towards another phenomenon. _'Ezel's Curse Power has vanished completely! Was he defeated?' _Niebla thought. _'No it has to be more then that. I can't even feel his presence or any lingering residue from him at all.'_

Her thoughts were cut off when a large tentacle shot out of the ground between her and Makarov. It then lunged at Niebla but was repelled by the she-demon's gravity curse. At that time the sound of a horn being blown could be heard across the town, a message to the demons it was time to retreat. "It appears we'll have to put this battle of ours on hold Makarov Dreyar." Niebla said calmly as she spun around and ran off.

Makarov said nothing, just watched as the Demon Lord retreated. He then turned his attention to the burning town, a sign of relief in his eyes as he noticed the flames dying down, most likely the work of his mages. The tentacles were also leaving, dissolving into thin air, leaving no traces of them at all.

"Oh darn, I was hoping to have grabbed her in time." A voice from behind said.

Surprised by the voice, Makarov spun around, prepared for a fight. But he was taken by surprised of the newcomer. Said person was female with long dark pink hair that reached her waist and onyx eyes. Physically she had a petite figure and looked like she was around the same age as Wendy and Romeo. And Makarov would've believed that if he hadn't notice the look of power and wisdom in her eyes. She wore a brownish-orange robe wrapped around her waist and nearly touched the ground. Underneath that Makarov could make out a purple nightgown that reached her knees, and black sandals on her feet. She was currently sitting on a partially destroyed bench with her feet kicking in the air, a calm look on her face.

Recomposing himself Makarov spoke to the girl. "Am I to presume that those giant tentacles were your doing ms.?" Makarov asked.

The young girl turned her eyes towards the old man and a small smile formed on her face. "Yep, I figured you people might need a hand so I gave one, well a couple actually." She said with a hint of mirth. "Also I've been meaning to talk you guys for a while so I wanted to send those demons away."

Figuring she meant no harm but not letting his guard down just yet, Makarov landed on the ground. His eyes still on the girl as he spoke, "Oh and what would you like to talk to my guild about?" He asked.

"Simple really, we both have the same goal." She said as she hopped off the bench and stood before Makarov. She was a good several inches taller then the guild master. "My name is Hestia and I want to bring forth the destruction of Zeref's demons, the demons of Tartarus."

**And there we go! Chapter 5 is done! Sorry it took a while, college has had me busy and I've also been preoccupied with my other stories too. Anyway review!**

**Wacko12**

**Fanon Curses Mentioned So Far:**

**Hado (A curse that focuses on manipulating energy for physical augmentation to super levels as well as a healing factor and can be released for energy projectiles and concussive force)  
**

**Dark Light (A curse that uses dark-yellowish laser beams for various effects)**

**Law (A curse that manipulates gravitational force)**

**Mantra (A curse that allows the user to summon and control jet black ink-like substance that can be used as bludgeons, impalement, stick on surfaces or create armor and other objects as well as tainting whatever it touches, causing corruption and mutations while putting it under the user's control)**

**Translations:**

Torrens: (Muddy Torrent)

Nigrantem (Black Rain)

Nigrum Bomb (Black Bomb)

Caveam Atramento (Ink Cage)


	6. Capture the Celestial Mage

**Now time for the next chapter! And as for those who have been asking for Lucy to have a more prominent role in the stories will see it in this chapter! And more secrets of E.N.D shall be revealed and introducing some new characters on both sides.**

**So without further ado here we go! Read, enjoy and review!**

**(Cube, E.N.D's personal chambers)**

The door to the personal room of the Master of Tartarus was swung open as Mard Geer stepped in. Even as he walked in he could fill the killing intent of E.N.D slowly leaking out throughout the chamber. Nevertheless Mard Geer made his way in. Outside several guards stood at attention, closing the door to give the two privacy and eavesdropping was ill advised. "Master E.N.D" Mard Geer said, kneeling before the God of Etherious.

"Mard Geer" E.N.D said, his voice low but you could still hear it. The Master of Tartarus was sitting on his personal throne, arms spread out on the armrests and his hood shadowing his eyes. "You felt it too, did you not? Ezel is gone."

"Yes Master, I have." Mard Geer said without raising his head. While E.N.D was indeed known for his cruelty to others the firstborn of Zeref held a deep love for his own kind, a side he rarely shows outside the walls of Cube. It was one of the reasons why he had something like Hell Core invented in the first place. "There are no reports on the battlefield but we can be certain of whom it was. Only one being could've wiped a Etherious from existence and stop them from returning to Hell Core."

"Strafe" E.N.D said with a frown.

"The Outsider" Mard Geer added. "Only his curse, Legion, could've erased a being's entire essence. Denying them even rebirth." The Underworld King summarized. "Master if it indeed was him then that means _they_ will begin to move too."

"If so we should act quickly." E.N.D said as he leaned forward. "The Ex-Chairman is aboard correct?" When Mard Geer nodded E.N.D continued. "Then have him begin locating Jellal so we can release the third seal. Furthermore what is the status of Jackal and Tempesta?"

"They've just finished regenerating, along with that new recruit Kyouka brought, Master. Minerva I believe her name is." Mard Geer replied.

E.N.D raised an eyebrow at that. He had planned only on sending five people operatives on an assignment he needed done. But the God of the Etherious was curious of what this Minerva could do. "Very well. Summon the three to the meeting room…and then those two from Grimoire Heart along with Torafusa. I have a mission for them that is of the up most importance." E.N.D ordered.

"It shall be done Master." Mard Geer said without hesitation. He did not doubt the Master's orders. They held purpose and reason, and he would follow them without question.

Several minutes later in the meeting chamber, Jackal, Tempesta and a now demonized Minerva, walked through the door. Sitting on his usual throne at the end of the room, E.N.D smirked at the two Demon Lords' new appearances. Apparently Lamy had been very careful at giving them new attractive appearances, especially Tempesta. The Guild Master also noted Minerva's more "revealing" appearance, plus one of her eyes was now covered by a black strap and the pair of horns on her heads now.

The males kneeled before their Guild Master, with Minerva being right behind them. The newest member of Tartarus kept her eyes down to the ground, making sure to refrain from being disrespectful to E.N.D. Even before entering the room, Minerva could sense the incredible power from the Etherious and she, despite her arrogance, knew that doing anything unwise would lead to…an unfortunate outcome.

She also noticed that on the left side of E.N.D's throne was another person. A male of average height who was wearing dark purple slacks held by a black belt with a silver buckle. Along with that was a white dress shirt tucked under the slacks with a red tie and a sleeveless dark purple vest over the shirt. Attached to the tie was gold and red brooch. The figure also wore black gloves over his hands and black shoes too. In truth he looked entirely human except for his face. What looked like a leather grey mask covered his entire head, almost like a second skin almost, you could see the outlines of his nose and ears. Over where his mouth would be was a thin line that you could barely see going across it. The line was formed to look like a smile almost. His right eye was covered by black eye patch held by a chain and on the eye patch was the Tartarus Guild Symbol. The left eye however glowed an ominous green, capable of sending chills down anyone's spine. He also had an ornate cane in his hands, with the handle looking like a snake. From what Minerva knew so far of Tartarus, this person was Lugar of Nothingness, personal servant and assassin of E.N.D.

"Master" Both Tempesta and Jackal said at the same time in respectful tones.

"I am please to see that you two have recovered already as there is much to be done." E.N.D said before noticing something. "However judging by your face, you have something to say, Tempesta?"

"Yes Master" The tan-skinned and human-looking Etherious said. "I wish to deeply apologize for being unable to complete the assignment that you entrusted me, Master. Plus, the fact that I was unable to fatally wound them due to Silver's actions has shamed me before you. I am willing to accept whatever punishment you give to atone for my failure." The Calamity Curse user finished.

E.N.D studied Tempesta for a moment before looking at Jackal. "And do you feel the same way, Jackal?" The Etherious asked.

Jackal didn't respond verbally, but merely nodded his head in silence. Despite his arrogance and brash attitude, Jackal, like all other Etherious, worshiped E.N.D as a god. And to fail God's will is equivalent to a sin. Minerva merely watched the spectacle with silent astonishment. It was hard for her to comprehend of how quickly two of the Tartarus' strongest members were so willing to pay for their failures.

E.N.D let out a sigh before resting his cheek on his right fist, with said elbow resting on the armchair. "While it is indeed true that you failed in your assignments. The fact is that you did your best to complete the orders I gave are enough for me to overlook it. So long as you were focus on the task at hand, you will receive no punishment. I trust that you will be more competent in the future."

The two Demon Lords bowed their heads more. "Thank you, Master." They said.

"With that said, the reason I have summoned you three is due to a new assignment I wish to give you. But first…" E.N.D said as his eyes wandered towards Minerva. "Minerva Orlando correct?"

Said girl stiffened as the Etherious' gaze landed on her. Nevertheless she replied, "Yes, Master E.N.D"

"Originally the strongest mage of the former strongest Guild in Fiore, Sabertooth, am I right?" E.N.D asked nonchalantly. "After your guild's defeat, you left and joined the Dark Guild, Succubus Eye. And were the only survivor of said guild when Kyouka paid a visit. How do you feel now that you are part human and demon?"

"Like…power is coursing through my veins." Minerva answered honestly as she looked at her hands. Even now after leaving the Hell Core, she could still feel overflowing power within her. She felt like she was at Erza's level now, even greater.

"I'm glad you feel that way." E.N.D said. "However I would like to mention one thing, since you're a new member." At the end of his sentence his voice had gone dark. And Minerva couldn't help but gasp in surprise as a powerful dark aura began to emit from the Tartarus Guild Master, consuming her very being. Her body was frozen stiff and she felt like is she tried to move her body would collapse.

"I can tolerate incompetence…even treachery to an extent." Here the pressure E.N.D was releasing increased even further, causing Minerva to sweat in fear, like she was in the middle of an inferno. She felt her conscious leaving her and even breathing or thinking was difficult. She was shocked at the power the Etherious was releasing. As she looked up her eyes widened at the glowing red eyes under E.N.D's hood, despite his calm posture. "I will not tolerate being used for someone else's ambitions. Is that understood?" He finished, as he knew that Minerva was indeed an ambitious person in terms of being in a position of power and superiority.

Not trusting her mouth, though it felt like it had gone dry in reality, Minerva could only nod in compliance. After that the pressure disappeared and she was able to relax as the aura faded. Jackal and Tempesta acted like nothing had ever happened and just continued kneeling.

"I am happy that you understand that Minerva. And while we're on the subject on your new membership, I would give you your first assignment." E.N.D said. "You and two other hybrids, along with Palu and Torafusa will be given an important task. Tempesta and Jackal will remain here for other orders."

"May I ask what the assignment is Master?" Minerva asked respectfully.

"You may. The target is a certain someone whom has captured my interest." E.N.D replied as his thoughts drifted back to a blonde hair young woman.

The three were dismissed later. As Minerva walked behind the two, she could overhear Jackal's words of profanity. "Damn to be put on standby by the Master…I'm not going to forgive that iron bastard and that black fur ball for making me look bad." Jackal cursed.

"Actually I think guard duty would suit someone of your appearance Jackal-kun." A mocking voice said.

Surprised by the voice, Minerva snapped her head to the left of her and spotted a figure, who had not been there seconds ago, leaning against the wall. It was a tall young man with tan skin, orange eyes, and dark brown hair that was combed back except for a single long strand of hair that went over his face. He had black markings running from the ends of his eyebrows towards his ears. A gold ornate bracer was around his left arm while a set of five golden rings were on each finger of his right hand. The person wore a jumpsuit with a light and dark shade of blue, with the jacket slightly unzipped and exposing his bare chest a little. Over his feet were black shoes that had a pointy end, which bent backwards a little. The person had a mocking look on his face as he stared at Jackal.

Minerva just watched in silence as Jackal growled at the newcomer. "Clocker, what the hell are you doing here?" The Demon Lord demanded.

The one named Clocker, merely raised an eyebrow at that. "Is that a rhetorical question?" He asked. "You should know that it is the duty of the Hell Guards to always remain by the Master's side in the event his person is in danger. And when not, we carry out his will and orders. Did being reborn make you less aware of the obvious?" Clocker asked tauntingly.

Jackal was by then grinding his teeth together in increasing rage. "Why you…" He said as his fingers twitched. Tempesta just watched passively with Minverva next to him, unsure of what to make of this. She could clearly tell that these two were on equal powers if this 'Hell Guard' as Clocker called himself, would openly mock Jackal.

However before Jackal could even take a step towards him, a deep and powerful voice spoke, "Is this a fight I'm about to see? And so close to the Master's presence?"

Marching towards the four was none other then Abaddon in all his demonic glory. The demon had a stern look in his eyes, directed towards Jackal and Clocker, power radiating off of him in waves. It was clear that the leader of the Demon Lords was not pleased of what was happening before him. And was more then willing to use violent methods to stop any chances of a fight occurring. Minerva sweated a bit at the overwhelming pressure of Abaddon. And the worse part was that, while terrifying, it _paled_ in comparison to the one released by E.N.D. However it was doing a good job of making Jackal hesitate and Clocker to lose his cockiness.

"I will not tolerate such immaturity so close to the Master's person. Clocker" Abaddon said as he turned his glare towards said demon. Clocker flinched a bit at the look. "As one of the Guardians of Purgatory, do not move from your position, especially just to antagonize your comrades. What if something or someone got pass you and threatened the Master?"

It was Jackal's turn to flinch and wither under the Demon Lord Leader's eyes. "That goes double for you Jackal. While I have no issue with you acting like that at other times I will not tolerate it now. While Master E.N.D may have forgiven you for your failure, I am not so lenient. Now you and Tempesta are to follow your orders and head towards your posts." Abaddon ordered.

Not acting like his usual brash self, Jackal just bowed stiffly towards his superior, followed by Tempesta. "Yes Abaddon-san." Jackal said as he and Tempesta walked off. Clocker did the same, vanishing from sight, leaving only Minerva and Abaddon. After a moment Abaddon walked off, not even sparing a glance towards the hybrid. Minerva had just stood there, taking in of what just occurred. However her trance was broken by a voice from behind.

"It seems as if though Abaddon-san has not lost his touch of keeping subordinates under control." Lugar said as he walked up to Minerva. Said girl nearly jumped in surprise. She hadn't even sensed him a moment ago. Ignoring her surprise, Lugar simply walked past her while making a hand gesture for her to follow. Seeing no other choice, Minerva complied.

"I have orders from Lord E.N.D to assemble the group that you'll be with for this assignment. Along with the bait we will be using to draw the target out." Lugar said as he led Minerva down several corridors.

"If I may ask who is the target? Furthermore who is the bait?" Minerva asked. A part of her, the old her, the one of superiority, still remained in her, thus why she asked the question. But after witnessing the overwhelming pressure of both E.N.D and Abaddon, she kept her arrogance in check.

Lugar kept walking but was silent. Finally, without turning around, said, "The target is a member of Fairy Tail but its identity is only given to Palu-san and Torafusa-san. But the bait… is Erza Scarlet, who, from what I recall, is in critical condition after she and Mirajane battled and lost to Abaddon-san."

Minerva froze in place as he said those words. Erza Scarlet, the woman whom Minerva hoped to crush with her own hands, was defeated? And not just her but her along with Mirajane Strauss lost to that Abaddon person _at the same time_? It was at that moment Minerva realized just how formidable Tartarus was now…and she knew that any chance of her dream to rise to the top would stay just that, a dream.

**(Magnolia, Fairy Tail)**

"So how bad is it?" Makarov asked Macao, his temporary second-in-command. They were currently seated around a decent looking table within the remains of the guild building. Around them Fairy Tail members were moving around back and forth frantically, doing all sorts of tasks, mainly helping those wounded during the demon attack. They were also receiving help from the town citizens, mostly doctors and nurses, which was a good thing since not many of the mages were experts on healing besides Wendy. It was a good thing that Porlyusica agreed to come and help, despite her annoyance with the whole thing she could never turn down someone when their life was on the line…or when Wendy pleaded to her for help.

"Well I have to say we were fortunate that no one got killed, but we had a lot of close calls with many." Macao began. "As for collateral damage: let's just say a lot of people are going to need temporary homes for a while. Good thing some of them have relatives from out of town. The guild as you can see is a wreck, we literally don't have a roof over our heads and we lost a one-third of the second floor, with the rest being used for the more injured patients."

"Speaking of which, how's Gildarts?" Makarov asked, recalling having found the Guild Ace lying in his own blood.

"According to eyewitnesses, his opponent managed to get the better of him when they ripped out his left prosthetic arm. Then the demon fired some kind of laser beam that would've killed Gildarts if he hadn't rolled out of the way in time. He still took some damage but managed to survive. His opponent must've thought otherwise and left him alone." Macao said as he rubbed his head. "Porlyusica said that he should be find. None of the wounds were fatal, just lost a lot of blood. However we're going to have to find Gildarts a new arm to replace the one he lost. Cana is with him now. Still it's pretty disheartening to know that our Guild Ace got beaten so easily." He finally commented.

"I see" Makarov said. He knew that Macao's words were a bit harsh but seeing how he himself had trouble dealing with that Niebla character, Makarov couldn't really scold him. "What happened to Rogue? Did he leave already?" The old Master asked, changing the subject.

The Shadow Dragon Slayer had arrived an hour or two ago after following one of the Demon Lords that had attacked the town he was in. After conversing with Gajeel and Levy, whom had arrived at the same time, Rogue learned about the major assault Tartarus had done on Magnolia.

"He left a while ago. He's going to tell Sting about what happened here and try and see if they can send whatever help they can afford." Macao answered.

"Good" Makarov said as he looked at his grandson, who was helping out some people in moving rubble, along with his team. "Have we heard any word from Erza and Mira yet?" Makarov asked. Excluding Gray, who was still with his father, the two women were the only ones unaccounted for and it worried him.

"No nothing" Macao said, equally concern. No word from two of their S-Class Mages whom were both together? Not a good sign at all. "Do you think we should send someone to the Former Chairman's House and see what's going on?"

"That might be difficult." Makarov said. "A lot of our guys are pretty banged up from the fight and those who can still move are busy helping around the town, short on people as it is. Still we should try and dispatch a group to go and find them. It worries me that they haven't reported back yet."

"Speaking of people, what about that guy Azlack and Bisca mentioned? The one that saved them?" Macao asked.

Just right after the battle ended, the married couple had reported to Makarov about their mysterious savior. And not only how the person, Strafe as he was called apparently, easily defeated Ezel, but also that the Demon Lord seemed to have known him too. Makarov didn't know whether to feel relieve that this person had indivertibly saved two of his children, or worried that there was someone out there that could defeat a Demon of Zeref with ease.

"For right now we cannot worry about something like that. Our main concern is help the citizens, take care of our wounded and get in contact with the other guild masters to plan our next move. I have a feeling that Tartarus will be preparing another large offensive soon." Makarov said sternly.

"I can see why you're still the Guild Master Makarov. Even in a crisis like this you still remain calm and compose." A voice commented.

Makarov and Macao looked up to see the newcomer, Hestia, floating above them. She was still garbed in her attire that she wore the night before, but she had removed the robe and was in nothing more then a nightgown and barefoot. She was currently sitting cross-legged on a red pillow.

"Hestia-dono, I see that you decided to join us." Makarov said as he looked at the petite young woman.

Said woman pouted childishly, an act similar to Mavis Vermilion, first Guild Master of Fairy Tail. "Ara, ara~ no need for such honorifics Makarov. I was never one for such things. Just call me Hestia or Hestia-chan!" The pink haired girl said as she lowered herself so she was at least eye level with Macao. "And I figured that now was the best time for us to discuss about Tartarus. Or rather what you and the other guilds plan to do next."

"No offense ma'am, but you can't exactly act so comfortable here, seeing how we barely know you." Macao commented.

Makarov gave a quick disapproving look to the Fire Mage before shifting towards Hestia. Said person didn't seem the least bit affected by that comment, still retaining her compose smile. "You have to forgive Macao. We had the unfortunate experience of having a spy from the Magic Council integrating with our guild a few years ago. And while you did save our lives, as well as the whole town, I have to confess that you should tell us your reasons for doing so." Makarov explained.

Hestia gave Makarov a glance before replying, "You're feelings are understandable Makarov. And of course I will be happy to tell you my reasons." She then moved her eyes towards Macao. "In private of course."

Makarov looked between Hestia and Macao before giving the latter a brief nod. The blue haired man didn't seem to like it but complied with the Sixth Master and walked away, leaving only Makarov and Hestia. With him gone Hestia began to speak.

"My reasons for helping you should be obvious though: I want to stop E.N.D and his plan." Hestia explained as she looked at Makarov. "If he completes his plan then all of Fiore will be in danger, followed by the rest of the world."

"You mean how Tartarus desires to return to Zeref?" Makarov summarized.

"Did Silver tell you that?" Hestia asked, resting her cheek on her right fist.

"Yes, why? Are you saying that Silver lied to us?" Makarov asked, a moment of panic forming.

"It is both a lie and the truth." Hestia explained. "You see the truth is that all Etherious possess the inner desire, a "command" at the very genetic level you could say, to return to Zeref's side. But what do you suppose happens after the Etherious finally do reunite with their creator?" She asked rhetorically.

When Makarov didn't respond Hestia continued, though her face appeared to be downcast as she did. "Zeref curses himself, he curses his immortality and thus desires to die." She said in a sad voice. "To do so he had to create beings with the capability to kill him: and those beings were his demons, the Etherious. It is both his and their greatest wish for Zeref to die by their hands."

"Incredible…" Makarov gasped. He had no idea that a dangerous entity like Zeref wanted to die above all things. Most people with powers of his level would be driven by it and would desire destruction or domination of the world. And yet Zeref, the one deemed the most dangerous Dark Mage in history, sought only his own death. It made Makarov almost pity him as much as he feared him.

"However the danger does not lie there." Hestia resumed, ignoring Makarov's comment. "While only a few Etherious, such as E.N.D, know of this, only he knows of something else. A variable that comes after he eventually kills Zeref. And that…that is his true goal and why we must stop him. Also why I decided that we needed to unite the mage guilds to combat Tartarus together."

"And who is 'we' that you refer to?" Makarov asked eyes narrowed at the redhead.

Hestia was quiet for a moment before replying. "Tell me Makarov, I assume that you've heard of the Sentinels correct?" She asked. Makarov's shocked expression was all the answers she needed. "I am one of them. And as such our goal is to prevent any catastrophe from engulfing the world. So if we Sentinels are taking action against Tartarus, then I do not have to explain how serious the situation is."

**(Elsewhere in Magnolia)**

"Hyaah!" Loke cried as he struck a pile of debris with a Regulus enhanced punch. The debris was promptly punched aside, revealing a large hole in a house. Coming out were several people, the occupants grateful for being freed from what they thought would be their tombs.

"All of you! Please head towards the guild!" Lucy said as she guided the people out of the house. "We've set up shelter with food and medical attention there!"

The townsfolk nodded and murmured in agreement as they began moving towards the guild, guided by several other mages who helped the wounded.

Lucy and various other mages and townsfolk had been busy all day with the clean up. The demon attack had damaged much of Magnolia and everyone was doing their part to move debris and help free anyone trapped within the rubble. Currently Lucy was near the eastern part of the town, using her spirits to help as much as she could.

"Is there anything else you need Lucy?" Loke asked as he walked up to her. He had stopped his usually flirting with the blonde Celestial Spirit Mage after Natsu's death. It was obvious from the way she reacted to it, and the fact that she still held on Natsu's scarf, that Lucy had deep feelings for the Dragon Slayer, despite her denying it.

"Not right now Loke. I think we can handle the rest." Lucy said as she waved towards Levy, Wendy and Carla, the two making their way towards the Celestial Mage.

Loke nodded but said, "Okay but I'll be ready when you need me." The Lion Spirit said before returning back to the Celestial Spirit World.

The two other girls and cat had finally reached Lucy by then. "Lucy-san is everyone alright over here?" Wendy asked the older girl.

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, thank goodness. Most of them seem to have just minor scratches and bruises on them. What about you two?" Lucy asked.

"Pretty good too. Just a few with broken bones but nothing serious." The Sky Dragon Slayer said in a relieved tone.

"Well this part of the town was hit the least so it would make sense that there are fewer injuries." Carla summarized.

"By the way, where's Happy?" Levy asked, noticing that the blue cat wasn't with Lucy at the moment.

"He decided to do some scouting around the area in case we missed anything." Lucy replied. "With the fight that happened and all those tentacles that Hestia-san summoned, I wouldn't be surprise if someone or something was tossed about."

Just as she finished her sentence, a familiar voice yelled, "LUCY! GUYS!"

Looking up, the four females saw Happy, flying towards them at an incredible speed. A look of panic, fear and urgency could be seen on his little blue face as he reached them. Also running towards them were Lisanna and Elfman, the two siblings having spotted the frantic Exceed and came over to see what was wrong.

"Happy? What's wrong?" Lucy asked the incoming Exceed.

However he did not answer, Instead, Happy was moving so fast that he couldn't stop himself until he hit the ground, followed by a role as he eventually landed on his butt. Oblivious to that, Happy quickly got to his feet. "Lucy! It's bad, real bad! We have to hurry! Or else, and-"

"Stop!" Carla said sternly. She placed both of her paws on Happy's cheeks, silencing him. "Calm down. Breathe." She ordered.

"Aye…" Happy said his voice distorted due to the paws on his cheeks.

After calming down, Carla removed her paws, letting Happy speak. "I was flying around the area when I saw something in the forest nearby. I flew in closer and I saw that it was Erza!" Happy exclaimed.

"Erza?" Lucy repeated.

"Aye! And she was beaten up good! I was scared that she was dead for a moment." Happy replied frantically. The comment earned gasps from the others. "I tried to carry her to the guild but that only made her wounds worse. So I flew back here as fast as possible!"

"What?!" Everyone shouted. The idea of Erza being near death was impossible. But seeing the panic in Happy's eyes made them realized that what he was saying is true.

"Wait Happy, what about Mira-nee? Was she there?" Lisanna asked the blue cat, worried for her sister now.

Happy paused for a second before replying. "N-no, I didn't see Mira there at all…" He said.

Fear began to rise in the two Strauss siblings. But Lucy cut in. "Right now isn't the time for that. I'm worried about Mira-san too but we need to get to Erza first before it's to late." She reasoned to everyone. "Happy, take us there right away!"

"Aye sir!" Happy replied as he sprouted his wings and took to the sky.

"You guys go. I'm going to tell Master this." Levy replied as she dashed off back to the guild. As she did that the others followed after Happy. However none of them realized that they were being watched by a large shadowed figure standing on top of a nearby rooftop.

A few minutes later the group that consisted of Happy, Lucy, Wendy, Carla, Lisanna and Elfman arrived to the spot where Happy saw Erza. They had already left the borders of Magnolia and were now deep within the woods that surrounded the town. It did not take long for them to find the S-class mage. Her unmoving body was resting against a tree that stood out in a small clearing. As the group got closer they could finally see what made Happy so panic. The redhead was not wearing her trademark Heart Kreutz Armor while her clothing was ripped in some areas. Her skin was covered in scratches and bruises, and you could see a gash the size of a sword's blade on her stomach.

"Oh my god" Lucy muttered, a hand covering her mouth and a horrified expression in her brown eyes. None of them had ever seen the famous Titania so badly beaten up. In fact, judging from the wound in her stomach, they were surprise that she was even alive. Not wasting anytime, Wendy rushed forward and began healing Erza as fast as she could.

"How did she even get from the Ex-Chairman's house to here?" Carla muttered as something didn't seem to add up as the white cat walked closer to Erza and examined her.

"Who could even do this to Erza? I never have seen her so beaten up before." Lucy added. While that was happening Lisanna and Elfman were looking around the area for their sister.

"Nee-chan! Can you hear us?" Elfman's loud voice roared.

"Mira-nee! Mira-nee!" Lisanna shouted out frantically. "What on earth could've happened to her?" The youngest Strauss muttered worryingly.

"Do you think she got captured?" Happy inquired of the missing Strauss's status.

Before anyone could respond to that Carla let out a loud gasp as she examined Erza. As all head turned towards the white Exceed she said. "Her guild mark…" Carla said, pointing to the left shoulder. "It's gone!"

Suddenly Erza's left arm moved outwards and smacked Carla to the side. Following that the redhead's left leg kicked forward, hitting Wendy right in the chest. The impact sent the Sky Dragon Slayer backwards, landing on her back.

"Carla! Wendy!" Lucy cried in shock. And then Erza's right arm stretched to unnatural proportions as it quickly shifted into a snake. The snake wrapped itself around the Celestial Spirit Mage before Lucy could even react and then held her in the air as Erza got up, her hair shadowing her eyes.

"Lucy!" Happy yelled as Lisanna and Elfman turned around and watched what happened.

"What the hell are you doing Erza!?" Elfman yelled at the redhead.

Realization hit Lisanna. "Y-you're not Erza!" She exclaimed as she shakily pointed a finger towards the redhead.

'Erza' merely smirked as her form began to shift, while her snake arm reeled in, still holding a captured Lucy. Soon her form changed completely to reveal a new person before the Fairy Tail Mages.

The woman was of average height and possessed long blue hair and purple eyes with cobalt lines descending from the lower part of her eyes. On her head were five horns that gave off the appearance of her wearing a crown. She had pale skin and a figure that women would die for; an hourglass form, large perfectly shaped breasts, heart shaped rear, and firm thighs. Her outfit did little to hide her impressive figure. Said outfit consisted of a thigh-length white Chinese battle dress with light-green trims. For her lower part she wore black low-heel, calf-high boots. Underneath her dress were black leather shorts. She also bore elbow-length black leather gloves. On her lower left thigh was a maroon version of the Tartarus Guild symbol.

"Tartarus…" Lisanna muttered as she helped Wendy up.

"We were tricked!" Happy shouted, upset that this imposter deceived him.

"Kukuku…" The demon laughed quietly. Her snake arm tightened its grip around Lucy's body, making the blonde gasped in pain. "Don't be so upset little pussycat. My shape-shifting curse, Blut Mantel, is not something that can be so easily seen through. But pushing that aside allow me to introduce myself as Phantom Voice Palu of the Demon Lords of Tartarus." The now revealed Palu said in a mocking tone. She then turned her attention towards Lucy. "And thanks to you blue cat, I finally have captured my target…Leandra-sama."

**And there is chapter 6! Hope you all like this chapter. I had wanted to make it bigger but I didn't want to keep you all waiting. Anyway please review and on a side note I am so happy that the theory of E.N.D was correct! I admit it feels weird and yet exciting to see an actual theory by fans proven right.**

**Wacko12**

**This is just a list of the Fanon Curses introduced so far. I figure I should do it so that way people will know what curse each Demon has. Will be updated each chapter when a new curse is introduced. Please note that they will only be listed if I put the curse's name down in the chapter itself. Furthermore I will list Curses already mentioned but am just doing it again so no one forgets.**

**Hado (A curse that focuses on manipulating energy for physical augmentation and other related effects)  
**

**Dark Light (A curse that uses dark-yellowish laser beams for various effects)**

**Law (A curse that manipulates gravitational force)**

**Mantra (A curse that allows the user to summon and control jet black ink-like substance that can be used as bludgeons, impalement, stick on surfaces or create armor and other objects as well as tainting whatever it touches, causing corruption and mutations while putting it under the user's control)**

**Blut Mantel (A curse that allows the user to shape shift either parts or their entire body into different things, whether being inanimate objects such as swords or animals such as snakes and dogs. Can even change into other humans too. Also grants the user elastic properties)**


	7. Revelations Part 1

**Next chapter of the story! Sorry for making you all wait! Enjoy and review!**

**(The Cube, Hell Core)**

Several soldiers of Tartarus were working around a single tube, filled with sin or demon particles as humans called them. The tube had multiple tentacles connected to it from the top and the sides, with a few within the tube. Those that were inside the tube were holding onto what look like the few remnants of a body. To the side, a bunny-like demon could be seen as she watched her team at work.

The sound of the door opening could be heard. Turned around, the bunny eared demon, Lamy, saw that it was her superior Kyouka, followed by Mard Geer and E.N.D. "Lamy, is it prepared?" Kyouka asked her subordinate.

"It's all set and ready to go Kyouka-neesama!" Lamy declared in her usual goofy tone. "I was really surprise that even a little bit of him managed to return even after Strafe ate him up." As she looked back at the tube. Indeed within the tube were the few remains of Ezel, multiple tentacles wrapped around what was left of him.

"He must have returned to Hell's Core just before Strafe completely consumed him. Though it is quite an impressive feat that he managed to return within that small time table." Mard commented.

"However with so little of him left, it will be several weeks until Ezel is fully restored." Kyouka commented as Curse Particles began to seep within the demon's form.

"Time we do not have. The plan is nearing its completion and we need all the resources that we can muster." E.N.D stated. He approached the vat, ignoring the bowing cloaked servants as they made room for their Master.

The strongest Etherious placed his left hand on the tube and suddenly black blood began to seep out from his palms. As it entered the tube, the black tendrils of blood headed straight towards the severed head and the other miscellaneous pieces of flesh. And then they began to glow, briefly illuminating the vat. The light died down seconds later, revealing a partially restored Ezel.

"It is done." E.N.D said as he lowered his arm.

Mard Geer walked up to his master and bowed. "Master, I suggest you return to your personal quarters. It has been a while since you've done a force regeneration on damage as extreme as Ezel's." Mard Geer suggested.

"That is not necessary Mard Geer. Besides I still have business I need to do." E.N.D replied as he made his way out of Hell's Core, his cloak swaying behind him. His second in command followed close behind him while the others checked up on Ezel's status. "I shall be out for a while Mard Geer. You will be in charge until then and keep me posted on Palu and Torafusa's mission."

Mard Geer internally frowned at that. While he did not doubt his Master's intentions, the Etherious was not very enthusiastic of E.N.D leaving the guild until the time came. Tartarus had already lost its Guild Master once, and Mard Geer did not want E.N.D to disappear again, a settlement shared by the other Etherious. But Mard Geer knew better than to question E.N.D's decisions. "As you wish. May I ask where you will be going Master?" The Underworld King asked.

E.N.D paused in his steps as he turned his face slightly to look at Mard Geer. "Just making a few stops. There are some people I want to see before we begin final preparations towards our goal." He answered before disappearing in a swirl of smokes and flames.

**(Magnolia Forest)**

"Get your hands off Lucy!" Lisanna yelled as she activated her Animal Soul Take Over. She was now in her Cat form, claws ready to strike at Palu. Behind her Elfman also took action, transforming his right arm into a large stone arm.

Palu did not seem faze. Instead she smirked and raised her left arm. Her fingers suddenly shot out at incredible speed, heading straight towards the charging humans. Lisanna managed to dodge them thanks to her enhanced reflexes granted by her Take Over. Elfman used his stone arm as a shield to block the blows. Lucy was busy trying to reach for her keys while still wrapped around Palu's arm.

Lisanna had managed to reach Palu and was prepared to strike the demon to free Lucy. But just as she was about to pounce, she was suddenly strike by an oncoming projectile that exploded upon contact. "Kyaah!" The youngest Strauss cried as she was sent skidding across the ground.

"Lisanna!" Lucy cried as she watched the white haired girl hit a nearby tree before landing on the ground hard.

"Who the hell did that?!" Elfman roared…before suddenly being rammed in the stomach by Torafusa, who had just arrived onto the scene. The demon's blade arm caused the mage to let out a gasp in pain before the demon grabbed Elfman's arm. Than Torufase performed a strong throw as he tossed Elfman over his shoulder, causing him to hit the ground painfully.

"Elfman-san!" Wendy yelled as the other Strauss sibling was knocked to the ground. He tried to get up but was swiftly knocked out by a well-aimed punch to the head by Torafusa.

"I guess we should have expected others to have come with the target." Torafusa commented as he looked down at the unconscious human.

"Another Tartarus demon!" Carla shouted. Levy and Wendy were about to spring into action, but they too were swiftly incapacitated by two more arrivals. Carla and Happy also tried to move but two multi-color projectiles struck them, sending the Exceeds to the ground.

The three newcomers soon made themselves known. The largest one was a male with pale skin and obese. He had a large round face that did not seem to the match his arms and legs, which were slightly smaller. He had what looked like a pig nose on his face and a curly tail sticking out from his rear. The other male was around normal size and had what looked like silver hair in the shape of a spiraled horn pointing forward, similar to a pompadour. And the last one was a female, and a familiar one too.

"Minerva of Sabertooth?!" Lisanna cried as she recognized the second female Etherious.

"And those two are from Grimoire Heart!" Levy added as she recognized the two males from Tenrou Island.

"Ah the fairies and devils meet once more. However here we stand in just the opening of the apocalypse that is yet to come." Rustyrose said in his usual dramatic voice as he did a flamboyant pose.

"Er, er, I-I feel like I seen them somewhere. Woo-wee." Kain said followed by a pig honk. Minerva just remained silent during the whole ordeal, a neutral look on her face. "O-oh yeah, you guys are the one who beat us before!"

Lucy grunted as she tried to free herself from Palu's grip, but to no avail. "Please do not struggle, Leandra-san. Our Master would be most displease if you were presented with injuries on your person." Palu commented as she stared at the blonde.

The Celestial Spirit Mage just glared at the she-demon. "Where is Erza?! What have you done with her?" Lucy demanded.

Palu smirked. "The redhead? She and the white haired girl have been taken back to our base for interrogation and later conversion." The blue haired demon explained.

"White haired girl…Mira-nee?!" Lisanna exclaimed as she struggled to get up from Rustyrose's blow.

"Both of them were captured? How?" Levy asked, completely bewildered that two of their strongest mages were defeated and now in enemy hands. The thought just seemed inconceivable.

"You shouldn't be so surprise. After all just look at your current predicament." Palu said mockingly as she walked next to Torafusa, Lucy still trapped in her grip. "After all, you humans have been our puppets for decades. It is only natural for you to fall before the might of the Demon Lords of Tartarus."

"Enough" Torafusa said. "We have what we came for. Let us leave before we test his Majesty's patience." The lizardman said sternly.

"I cannot leave while my soul is screaming for revenge." Rustyrose said as he approached Elfman, who was still recovering from Torafusa's attack. The former Seven Kin transformed his right arm into his signature Jet Black Sword.

"Uh, uh yeah! We need to make them pay for…for humiliating Grimoire Heart! Woo-wee!" Kain declared in agreement.

However both Dark Mages were soon clutching their heads in pain. Dropping to their knees they managed to look up and saw Torafusa with his hand raised, a displease look on his face. "As one of the Demon Lords, we are given the permission by Master E.N.D to punish subordinates if they should step out of line in following orders. This mission is of great importance, given to us by the Master himself, I will not allow you two fools to mess it up. You are no longer members of Grimoire Heart, you are now soldiers of Tartarus and thus soldiers of his lordship. Understood?" The Demon said sternly.

Meanwhile, the Fairy Tail mages were watching the scene as they tried to think of a plan to get out of this mess. They didn't know if anyone has noticed their absence and they couldn't do anything reckless while Palu still had Lucy in her grasp. But before any movement could be made, something made a loud bang as it crashed into the ground nearby. Shocked, the Fairy Tail Mages and Tartarus Demons watched in cautious uneasiness as a figure's silhouette could be seen through the rising dust. In a few seconds said being walked out of the crater it made, showing everyone who it was.

"Strafe!" Palu gasped as she stared at the tall masked man with a look that was a mix of hate and fear. Torafusa cursed under his breath.

"The one who saved Bisca and Azlack…" Levy murmured as she stared at the tall and imposing black clad man. "Why is he here?"

Eventually the tense moment was broken by Kain, who had already taken out his Mr. Cursey. A strand of his hair was attached to the doll as Kain changed the doll's material to iron, hardening his body with the same property and increasing his physical capability. "Woo-wee! It is time for the Great Kain-sama to shine! I'll show you the power of Grimoire Heart-er I mean Tartarus! Woo-wee!" Kain declare as he charged straight towards Strafe.

"You fool! Stop!" Torafusa ordered but Kain paid no attention as he neared Strafe, who remained perfectly still.

"Dodoskoi!" Kain shouted as he slammed his palm right into Strafe's chest. The impact caused a small shockwave with dust picking up again. To everyone's shock however, Strafe did not budge an inch. In fact it looked like he hadn't even felt the attack.

"Woo-wee-" That was the last thing Kain uttered as Strafe swiftly decapitated him. His right arm was once more in its blade form, the large wicked looking blade covered in Kain's blood. Said person's head hit the ground with a thud, followed by the body.

The atmosphere was filled with horrifying dread as the Fairy Tail mages and hybrids stared at the headless corpse. Also the look on Kain's face was one of complete surprise, as if he had not registered even after being killed. The only ones who remained calm were Palu and Torafusa. The latter let out a curse. "Idiot"

Strafe then shot forward towards Torafusa and Palu, changing his blade arm into claws, while his left arm changed into enlarged muscular black version. He lunged at Palu first but Torafusa managed to intercept him, his blade arm clashing with Strafe's claws. The mask man then thrust his muscular left arm towards the side of Torafusa's head. The Demon had no time to react as the punch made contact, the impact sending him flying backwards. With him out of the way, Strafe lunged at Palu again, who had just morphed her free arm into a sword blade.

But once again Strafe was stopped when several projectiles flew at him. With inhuman reflexes the hooded man jumped back to avoid the explosions caused by the attack. Turning his head, Strafe saw that Minerva was the source of the attack. Already her hands were covered in wave-like matter

Strafe glared at her behind his mask before shooting towards her. His right arm morphed to resemble the left one, a black enlarged muscular version. Minerva fired barrages of spatial matter. Strafe however merely raised his arms and deflected the attacks even when they exploded, his wounds would just heal. He had just about reached Minerva when he had to block an attack from Rustyrose's blade.

"You shall pay for taking Kain's life bastard!" Rustyrose roared as he brought his Jet Black Sword down for another strike. But instead Strafe managed to grab the arm and launched his own punch towards the former Grimoire Mage.

"That which dwells in my left hand, is a golden shield that pushes everything back!" Rustyrose chanted as his left hand turned into a large golden shield, ready to take on Strafe's attack. However he was not prepared for the enhanced muscle mass of granted thanks to Strafe's Curse. The enlarge fist left a large dent in the otherwise impenetrable shield. The impact also caused Rustyrose to go flying backwards, toppling over a tree before losing conscious.

With him out of the way Strafe focused his attention on the two Demon Lords, who were joined by Minerva. Beneath his mask Strafe's eyes shifted towards Lucy, who was still being held in Palu's grasp. Torafusa and Minerva once more stood before him as Palu morphed her other arm into a sword. The mages of Fairy Tail could only watch from where they laid, the damage they received still holding them down…until Elfman suddenly sprung forward, changing into his Beast Soul.

"Elf-niichan!" Lisanna cried in shock. But it soon turn to confusion when she watched Elfman attack Strafe. Said person easily dodged the punch, but Elfman continued his attack, throwing rather uncoordinated punches at the mask being.

"Elfman, what are you doing?!" Lucy shouted, still trying to free herself to no avail. The other Fairy Tail mages were also confused by Elfman's strange behavior. However the members of Tartarus, excluding Minerva, seemed to have already figured it out.

"Looks like Sayla's Macro is still working on him." Torafusa commented as he reached for something in his coat.

"Macro…?" Lisanna muttered as her mind went back to when she and Elfman encountered that Tartarus member at the former Council Member's house. "So that's what her curse does…she can also use it from a distance?!"

"While the puppet keeps Strafe distracted, we'll be returning to Cube with Leandra-sama." Palu said as Torafusa brought out a round object the size of a marble. It glowed briefly before a circle with the Tartarus' symbol on it.

"The Curse Circle is ready, let us go." Torafusa ordered as he, Palu and Minerva prepared to enter the circle. Lucy was now desperately struggling to get out of Palu's grip, still to no avail.

"Lu-chan!" Levy cried as she finally got up. She could only watch helplessly as her best friend was about to be taken away.

As if answering her unsaid pleading, an arc of ice came soaring through the air. No one had time to react as the ice cut Palu's arm in half, freeing Lucy. As she landed on the ground with a grunt, Palu howled in pain at the loss of her arm. "T-this ice…!" Palu gasped as her arm began to regenerate though the pain was still there.

"Shit, withdraw now!" Torafusa ordered as he grabbed Palu and jumped into the circle, followed by Minerva. The Curse Circle closed just as ice froze that area.

Silver suddenly appeared, an annoyed look on his face as he stared where the Tartarus members were. "Tch, almost had them." He muttered.

"Silver-san?" A voice asked timidly. Said person looked down and saw Wendy and the others staring at him. They all had a mixture of surprise and relief in their eyes as he came out of the forest.

BAM!

The loud noise got everyone's attention. Lisanna was the first to look and her eyes widened in horror. "Elf-niichan!" She cried.

Lying on the ground before Strafe's feet was Elfman's still form. He had reverted back to his normal appearance and fortunately, his back was gently going up and down, a sign of him breathing and thus alive. Strafe looked down at his opponent's prone form before his gaze looked up, meeting Silver's.

The two stared at one another for a silent moment. Each of them trying to decipher what the other would do but both were ready for a fight. Eventually Strafe's arms changed back to normal and swiftly retreated into the forest. His form soon disappeared amongst the clustered trees.

Once he was sure Strafe was gone, Silver let out some air. He then looked at the others who were getting up. Lisanna was the first one up, already at her brother's side. Levy was helping up Lucy, checking her friend over, and the Exceeds, especially Carla, were assisting Wendy. "You kids okay?" Silver asked.

"Yes, thanks to you." Levy replied as she finished checking over Lucy. "Why are you here anyway Silver-san?"

"Gray and I just came back. But as we were about to head back to your guild building I sensed the familiar presence of demons nearby so I decided to check it out. Good thing too, had I been any slower and they would've taken Ms. Heartifilia back to Cube."

"This wouldn't have happened if I wasn't fooled by that fake. I can't believe I let that happened." Happy lamented as his ears dropped.

"Don't blame yourself Happy. You didn't know." Lucy said as she walked over to the others. "For now let's help Elfman and get back to the guild. We need to tell them about what we just learned." Lucy said.

"We had better bring this person back as well." Silver commented as he picked up an unconscious Rustyrose by the jacket collar. "Also there are two girls at the guild too, from some Independent Guild I think."

Lucy and Levy blinked at that bit of information. Who did they know that belonged to an Independent Guild?

**(Later in the guild building)**

"What?! Erza and Mirajane have been captured by Tartarus?!" Makarov exclaimed in shock.

His feelings were shared by the rest of the guild. To think that both Erza _and _Mirajane, two of their strongest mages, were captured was not only shocking but inconceivable. Combine those two could take down enemies that even Gildarts would have trouble dealing with. But it seems that the two were now indeed in Tartarus' clutches, and with Gildarts still recuperating, only Laxus and Makarov were the guild's remaining top fighters that could take on S-level or higher combatants.

Nevertheless this was a serious blow to the guild's pride. The only bright side to all this was that now they knew and they could at least plan a rescue mission. Along with that both Silver and Gray had returned, with the latter now possessing a tattoo on his right arm, which signified him as a Devil Slayer. Furthermore they managed to prevent Tartarus from capturing Lucy, for whatever reason the mages had no idea. Finally they had a prisoner now, said person being interrogated by two of his former comrades.

"It's been a while huh?" Rustyrose asked from his spot on the chair. Both his wrists and ankles were held in Sealing Magic Chains while at the same time restraining his mobility. That way he could not use magic or even escape. Standing before him were his former guildmates, Ultear Milkovich and Meredy. "It seems that these past seven years have been kind to you."

"Unfortunately the same can't be said about you Rustyrose." Ultear replied as she gazed at the man's demonic appearance. She had a neutral gaze while Meredy's was a mix of concern and curiosity.

"True" Rustyrose commented with a grim smile.

"Hate to interrupt the reunion but I need some answers from this person." Makarov said as he approached the three. Along with him were Silver and other core members of the guild. Once he had the Tartarus mage's attention Makarov got straight to the point. "I will only ask this once, where are Erza and Mirajane being held?"

Seeing as his fate was already sealed, Rustyrose answered truthfully. "Both were captured by Abaddon-san when they went to investigate the former Chairman's house. Last I checked they were taken to Cube, Tartarus' base. The one named Erza was sent to be interrogated by Kyouka-san, second-in-command of the Demon Lords. While Mirajane was taken to Hell's Core, to be modified."

"Hell's Core? Modified?" Lucy repeated. Everyone then turned towards Silver, who had a troubled look on his face.

"Hell's Core is a special lab within Cube. Essentially, it's where members of the guild are reborn if killed…and where humans are taken to be remade into demons to serve the guild." Silver explained.

"Wait. You mean Mira-nee will be…?" Lisanna began as horrifying realization crept onto her and the others. Elfman, who had woken up a while ago, placed a hand on Lisanna's shoulder in an attempt to calm her but he was also feeling unnerved by this.

"Don't worry Lisanna, we will save Mirajane and Erza no matter what. Fairy Tail doesn't abandon their own." Makarov assured the girl.

Rustyrose let out a dry chuckle, getting everyone's attention. "Do you really think saving them will be so easy? You're all taking E.N.D way too lightly. I learned that the hard way." He said as the fearful memories came back to him.

"What do you mean?" Meredy asked.

The Embodiment Mage was silent for a moment, as if deliberating. Then he spoke. "After our failure on Tenrou Island, when Zeref killed Master Hades, Kain and I took command over the remnants of Grimoire Heart. Using my Arc of Embodiment, it was easy for me to put the illusion that we were still at full power. But that changed two years ago when many of Grimoire aligned Dark Guilds began to disappear. We were able to deduce that it was Tartarus's doing. So Kain and I, using two duplicates of Zancrow and Azuma that I created, stormed their base in an attempt to intimidate them and regain our missing subordinates. That's when everything went wrong."

The Fairy Tail Mages, Silver and the two Crime Sorcière mages noticed how Rustyrose's body begins to tremble and a look of fear appeared on his face. "We were confronted by Kyouka, who used her curse to immediately incapacitate us. And that's when we felt…E.N.D" There his voice began to strain and sweat started to slide down his face. "I'll never forget that feeling. I can still remember those two red eyes staring at us, the eyes of the Devil. Even if he wasn't there physically, I could still feel E.N.D's presence engulf the entire place, like an endless abyss of flames burning my body so fast that I didn't even get a chance to scream. I thought we would be killed but instead, like some twisted sense of mercy, E.N.D had Kain and I modified and turned us into Hybrid."

There was a long moment of silence as everyone took all of that in. From the way Rustyrose described him, it was if E.N.D was some kind of God. A Dark God, but a God nonetheless and the description of him did nothing for the moral of the guild. Finally Makarov broke the silence. Despite what they just heard, they needed useful information, such as E.N.D's goal.

"Do you know what his plans are? All we know is that it involves Zeref." Makarov said, recalling his conversation with Hestia an hour or so ago. Said person was somewhere in the building, possible talking to the Sentinels.

"I do not know the specifics of his plan. All I know is that it does not involve Zeref at all." Rustyrose revealed, much to everyone's surprise. "In fact, from what I heard E.N.D is after someone named Ankhseram."

"Ankhseram…?" Levy muttered. "I feel like I've heard that name before."

"That's all I really know. My standings in Tartarus was nothing more than a meager grunt." Rustyrose explained before adding. "Though I doubt they would allow me to live despite by position." He said before his body burst into blue flames. Everyone let out surprise gasps, taking a few steps back from Rustyrose. Meredy was the first to move, trying to reach her fellow comrade and help him. But she was stopped by a barrier that appeared all of a sudden. She and everyone else looked up to see Hestia, floating in the air, wearing her robe and had brown sandals on her feet.

"Purifying Flames" Hestia commented, a frown on her face, as she answered the unspoken question. "Flames that only burn those who were either alive or use to be. Touch them and the flames will spread. They also cannot be extinguish until the person has been reduced to ash." She explained as bits and pieces of Rustyrose's form began to crumble. Strangely though, he was not screaming in pain. "E.N.D must've put this as a failsafe if his subordinates were every captured. He was dead the moment we caught him."

"Heh, I was dead the moment I became a hybrid." Rustyrose replied as the flames consumed more of him. He took one last look at his former guildmates, both with sad looks on their faces, Meredy even had tears in her eyes. However a gentle smile on his face. "Meredy, Ultear-san. Though we never fully saw eye to eye, I'm glad to have seen you…one…last…time…"

Those were the final words of Rustyrose, member of Grimoire Heart's Seven Kin of Purgatory. For soon the blue flames completely consumed him, leaving nothing but a pile of ashes on the chair he sat on. Everyone just looked at the remains in silence, minus Meredy who was now crying, Ultear comforting her.

"Makarov" Hestia began as she landed besides the Guild Master. The Wizard Saint looked at the young pinkette. He had a million questions running through his mind and she knew that. "I will give you all the answers I have but not now. I've just pinpointed Cube's location and discovered that E.N.D is not there at the moment." Hestia revealed, causing Makarov and Silver to look at her in surprise. Both of them wondering how she knew all that. "If you want to save those guild members of yours, now is the time."

**(Somewhere in Fiore)**

"It's been a long time E.N.D." Zeref said to his strongest demon.

The two were sitting side by side on top of a hill that looked upon a large wasteland that stretched for miles. The Guild Master of Tartarus had his hood off, revealing his spiky pink hair as he and the Black Mage gazed upon the terrain in comfortable silence.

"You don't have to call me that. I prefer we address each other by our birth names, big brother." E.N.D said as his cloak fluttered in the breeze.

Zeref smiled fondly upon hearing that. While a bit disappointed that he wasn't here to kill him, the Black Mage was glad to know that they still held a brotherly bond with each other. "Very well, what did you want to speak about, Natsu?" He asked his younger brother.

The former Dragon Slayer of Fairy Tail simply smiled mysteriously as his crimson eyes narrowed a bit. "I have been thinking that, given the return of that woman, and the fact you being the emperor of the strongest empire in the west, that perhaps you would be considering of forming…an alliance?"

**And there we go! Sorry it took so long, I was just stuck of how to reveal E.N.D/Natsu to the rest of Fairy Tail. Anyway please leave a review!**

**Legion: **Strafe's curse allows the user to manipulate their own body's organic mass and biological structure at a cellular level for different effects.

**If it helps, imagine Strafe's abilities similar to Alex Mercer and James Heller from Prototype.**


End file.
